Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon
by ladyanaconda
Summary: They had been forgotten, mentioned only in myths and legends. In the depths of the Forest of Life, there was a region which was said to be cursed; any Creature that put a foot there never came back. Five humans decide to solve the mystery of the Chezamon.
1. Flashes of Gray

Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 1- Flashes of Gray.

Perim had many secrets; some had already been found, others were still waiting to be discovered. One of those secrets, however, was about to be discovered… not by the Creatures of Perim, but by humans. Five especial humans would bring the secret out to light…

Legends say that deep within Mist Forest, there's a part of the forest where there's a veil of mist present in the air, and the trees don't let much light of the sun go through the trees. Nobody dares to put a foot in that part, which is said to be cursed, since all the Creatures that had gone there never came back. That part of the Forest of Life came to be known as Mist Forest. Some Creatures claim that there's a Tribe living there, a Tribe which had been forgotten since ancient time. How they look like and where they live is a mystery, but it is believed that Mist Forest is their domain. If you out a foot in the forest, they strike. However, nobody knows for sure what they do with trespassers… Overworlders think they eat them, but nobody had the courage to go into the forest. Most Creatures say they're just a myth and that probably the explorers that disappeared were killed by a carnivore plant or fell prey to an animal. That is why going to Mist Forest at night is considered insane…

But Chaotic players didn`t think the same. Some of the players went to the Forest of Life and tried to find the so-called Mist Forest; some players went on their own account, while others were sent the Tribes in exchange of scans. However, all of them had the same results; they either couldn't find the forest or were attacked by "flashes of gray". However, before the attacker could capture them, players ported out. Eventually, they came to think as well that the forest was haunted. Now nobody, Creatures and Chaotic players alike, didn't even think about putting a foot on Mist Forest. But curiosity is a very strong feeling…

Two Chaotic players had gone to the Forest of life, their own curiosity getting the better of them. They had heard about Mist Forest at night, and decided to go and take a look, ignoring the warnings of the flashes s of gray that haunted the place. According to the stories they had heard, to find Mist Forest you had to go deep into the Forest of Life and when you say mist on the air and only a few sunlight rays, you had found it. However, you had to be wary about the mysterious attackers that frightened so many…

"I don't understand what's so frightening about this; it's only an old forest. Perhaps the others simply exaggerate," one of the players commented while looking for a sign of the 'gray flashes'

"Hey, don't say that! You'll bring us bad luck!" the other player growled, trembling in fear.

"Oh, come on! I doubt there's a living Creature actually living here! Just look at this! There's almost no moonlight, the plants look poisonous and there hasn't been a sign of life here!"

"That doesn't mean there's nothing living here! Perhaps they're asleep or-"

The first player rolled his eyes, "forget about it! Let's just find something that is worth scanning!"

However, they didn't know they were being followed. The Creature moved like a shadow; it stopped when they stopped and moved when they moved. Despite its ferocious mood, there was a glint of curiosity in its golden eyes. These strange beings had been coming into the forest since a few months ago, but they had never the chance to find out about them. Their orders were clear: capture trespassers and don't let them escape. However, in its thoughts, the Creature stepped on a branch. The second player which was getting nervous by the minute, started to panic when he heard a branch snap.

"Did you hear that?" he mumbled while looking around frenetically

"Hear what?" his companion inquired in annoyance at his partner's cowardice

"I'm sure I heard something, let's port out of here!"

"And miss this chance? Forget about it!"

"B-but don't you have the feeling that something is following us?"

"Don't be ridiculous! What could be following-?"

That's when the Creature decided to strike. It rushed from out of the bushes it was hiding, as fast as a lighting, and delivered a bite on one of the being`s leg. Then it jumped into another bush, preparing to strike again.

"What was that?" the first player kneeled to take a look at his leg, and saw in horror that there were fang marks which were bleeding pretty badly.

"See? I told you we should have ported out!" his partner began to look for his scanner on his pockets.

However, another flash of gray attacked and the player dropped his scanner. His partner tried to escape, but his leg was killing him. Both humans looked up and saw in horror that golden eyes with slit pupils were growling at them from the shadows, but the darkness enabled them to distinguish the appearance of the Creatures. They could tell, however, that they were not happy to see them. The player with the injured leg was the one panicking now; they looked as if they were going to attack at any minute. His partner was frenetically looking around for his scanner, but it was too dark for him to find anything. However, he was also trying not to incite the Creatures to attack. At last, he found his scanner, but as soon as the Creatures saw him pick it up, they dashed towards the two humans.

"Let's port the heck out of here!" the injured player shouted before taking out his own scanner; both players had ported out, and the Creatures' fangs closed in the air. When the players were gone, the Creatures just kept staring in shock and confusion at the place where the beings once stood; how had they done that? They simply disappeared! Then, the creatures let out angry howls howl… the Beta Male would not be pleased in the least.


	2. The Meeting

Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 2- The Meeting

The next day, Tom, Kaz, Peyton and Sarah were watching a drome battle from a table. It was Kaz's little sister, Luna, against a Danian Player. Luna preferred to use Mipedians.

"You know, for her first match, she's doing quite well." Sarah commented

"Mipedians against Danians; man, Luna is obviously trying to show who's better!" Peyton added

"Look at that!" Tom pointed at the screen in amazement:

In the drome, the battle was taking place on the Mipedian Oasis; Luna, who was fighting as Vinta, was invisible at the time and was holding a Pyroblaster. She was waiting for her opponent, who was fighting as Galin. Luna still couldn't believe she was actually winning the match; her opponent had only one creature left, and she only lost two creatures. Apparently, the lessons her older brother had been giving her were not as bad as all. All of sudden, she was struck by a Rock Wave. When Luna whipped her head around, she found her opponent was standing on a rock and was using a Spectral Viewer.

"Not so tough, are you?" he laughed, "When you mess with Danians, you get the sting,"

Then he used another Rock Wave. Luna became visible again and avoided the attack, then she shot her Pyroblaster and hit her opponent

"And when you mess with Mipedians, you get the tail!" she grinned as she kept firing.

Her opponent avoided her shots the best he could, but was finally struck down. Luna grinned and twitched her tail

"What's wrong? Not so tough now?" she rebuffed her opponent's words against him before using a Telekinetic Bolt against her opponent, coding him.

They were back in the drome; Luna was turned back to her original form. She looked of about ten years old, with purple eyes and long, orange hair tied into a ponytail. She was wearing a pink t-shirt, a purple sweater and a light blue skirt. Her shoes were lilac.

"Nice match, Lizarduna!" her opponent congratulated her

"Nice work too, Danian Dan." Luna grinned before walking out of the drome.

When she returned to Chaotic, Kaz ran towards her, as did the others.

"Nice work, Luna!" Kaz congratulated her eagerly

"Yeah, you sure kicked that Danian's thorax!" Peyton laughed

"That's because I have a great teacher!" Luna smiled at her older brother

Suddenly, Tom noticed there was a commotion on a table nearby

"What? New Creatures?" he heard a player ask

"Yeah, I think, because I've never seen anything like that thing!" other replied in terror.

"Hey, what's going on over there?" Sarah pointed out

"Let's find out," Peyton grinned as he walked over to the table where various players had gathered and noticed a particular sitting on the table, "Elliot, dude! What's going on here?"

"Haven't you heard? He was attacked by a new Creature!" one of the players replied

"New Creature?" Kaz inquired in confusion

"What did it look like?" Sarah added

"I don't know! I couldn't see it clearly, it was too fast. But I think it's a quadruped, and it had gray fur!" Elliot replied

"Has anyone see it?"

"No, it's impossible! They're too fast, and the place it is found has too much fog and is dark."

"Where can you find it?" Luna asked eagerly

"I wouldn't know how to tell you! One moment, I'm in the Forest of Life, and the next, I'm in this creepy-looking forest!"

Tom, Kaz, Peyton, Sarah and Luna walked to another table

"Can you believe it? A new Creature!" Kaz cried in amazement

"I don't know; maybe it's some a creature of a Tribe testing battle gear," Sarah deduced

"But Elliot said he had never seen something like that! And it was too fast!"

"I know! Let's go to that place and be the first Chaotic players in scanning that Creature!" Peyton suggested eagerly

"Not a bad idea at all," Tom agreed

"Apparently it's the only way to know what's really going on!" Sarah added

"Count me too!" Luna finally said

"Luna, it's dangerous!" Kaz was quick to react, "we don't even know how big or dangerous this creature is! You should better stay here."

"What? But I've never been to the Forest of Life!"

"Hey, Perim it's not like a Match. If you get coded, you will never be able to return to Chaotic!"

"Aww…. Okay, I'm staying…"

KAs and the others ran to the Port Court and ported away. After a while, Luna grinned and headed to the Port Court as well.

XOXOXOXOXO

Tom, Kaz, Peyton and Sarah appeared in the Forest of Life; it looked normal, there didn't seem to be a path to another place.

"Well, here we are. What now?" Sarah inquired looking around

"Well, Elliot said he got lost," Peyton remembered, "so maybe if we get lost, we will find the place."

"You know, sometimes I wonder why you always get better scans than me," Kaz muttered

The group walked towards a random direction. Apparently Peyton was right; the more they walked, the darker the forest became and mist began to appear. However, they heard no sounds, and that place was unfamiliar to them.

"What's this place? I have never seen it before…" Tom gasped

"Let's scan it so we won't have to look for it again," Kaz suggested and took his scanner out.

Tom, Peyton and Sarah did the same and the four scanners the place. Soon, the image appeared on their scanner and the name…

"Mist Forest? Sounds creepy!" Peyton commented

Meanwhile, Luna was nearby, too. She had the tendency of not listening to her older brother when it was about adventure. She had scanned the forest, and was trying to find the mysterious Creature everyone was talking so much about. She hoped it would not be hostile. Luna flinched when she heard a sound; she turned, but there were only plants and soil. The leaves of the trees blocked most of the sunlight, and the mist gave the forest creepy look. She kept walking, but heard the same sound. She suspected it was the Creature that had attacked Elliot. Her suspect became reality when a flash of red charged at her… but it was slower and a bit clumsier than the flashes of gray that had appeared before. It tripped over the mud and fell.

Luna was startled, and when she turned around… she was face-to-face with the Creature. Well, in reality, she was legs-to-face with the Creature, as it had fallen. When it stood up, Luna examined it closely; it didn't match the descriptions the other Chaotic Players that had been lucky enough to see the Creatures for a brief moment gave. They had imagined this said Creature to be a large monster with spikes all over its body, impenetrable armored skin, and the size of a large horse.

In reality, this Creature wasn't that big. It was slightly bigger than a wolf from Earth; in fact, the creature looked pretty much like a wolf. It had four legs, a long bushy tail and thick fur. But the Creature's face was more reptilian than canine: its' eyes were on each side of its head, its ears were rather big, its nose was like that of a snake and it had cat-like eyes. But this Creature was not gray, like other players described the Creatures, but red… well, not completely red; its jaw, underbelly and legs were white. Its front and back paws were a solid orange, and there was a orange band around its muzzle; it also was also quite overweight. The Creature's icy blue eyes were looking at her from its spot on the ground; it didn't seem so dangerous… but that changed when it lunged at her and pinned her to the ground.

Luna coughed when she felt the beast press its paw against her throat. She saw into its eyes, which were completely slits; its breath was hot. The poor girl was terrified… she felt her heart race in her chest. The Creature opened its jaws, showing white, sharp fangs of a wolf and apparently was going to kill- no, CODE her. When the Creature was going to strike, Luna closed her eye shut, expecting the blow… however, it never came. Luna opened her eyes and saw the Creature had stopped its fangs in middle air, just a few inches from her face. After a while, it closed its jaws and got its paw off Luna's throat, it even got off her. Luna coughed and breathed deeply before setting her eyes on the mysterious Creature, but it had turned and was walking away.

"Wait!" Luna cried

The Creature stopped and turned to see her

"Where are you going? Will I see you again?" Luna took her scanner out, "would you at least let me scan you?"

The Creature kept staring at her, as if thinking. Then it turned back to her and sat down, expecting Luna to scan it. Luna grinned as she pointed her scanner at the Creature and scanned it. She then checked the scan: its stats were rather nice, and she at least knew its name:

"Your name is Kaya?" Luna asked

Kaya snorted, as if giving her a positive answer. However, before Luna could ask any more questions, he suddenly stood up and ran away.

"Uh… see you later, I suppose," Luna whispered as she ported out.

Kaya had watched her port out from the bushes, however, and became startled when she disappeared. He wondered what thing she was, but right now he had no time to think about that. He turned around and ran through the extense forest.

XOXOXOXOXO

Luna appeared in Chaotic, and looked around searching for her brother. She spotted him in a table, speaking with the others.

"That was close!" he sighed in relief

"Man, those things aren't normal!" replied Peyton as he took a sip from his soda.

"Did any of you get to scan one of them?" Tom inquired

"I couldn't get the aim! They were too fast!" Sarah added

"Hey, Kazdan," Luna called for her older brother, "I scanned one of those creatures!"

The four friends turned to look at her.

"What? You mean you went to the forest!" Kaz cried in shock, "that'0s exactly what I told you not to do!"

"You scanned a one of those creatures? Let me see!" Peyton pleaded

"Yeah, I'd like how those creatures look like!" Tom added

Luna took her scanner out and showed them her new scan; they were surprised.

"Is that one of those creatures?" Sarah gaped

"Hey, but where are its spikes?" Peyton commented

"Kaya? What kind of name is that?" Kaz added

"The Tribe symbol! Let's see what Tribe it belongs to!" Las exclaimed

The Tribe symbol was that of a full moon with three claw marks.

"What Tribe is that? I've never seen that symbol before…" Sarah commented

"Maybe it's a new Tribe!" Kaz added

"But what would be the name?" Tom replied

"**Lizarduna, you have a Drome match against Klayotic in ten minutes.**"

"Oh, man. Be careful against Klay, he doesn't like to plan clean," Kaz whispered to his sister

"don't worry, I'll be fine," Luna smirked as she walked towards the drome

Perhaps her new scan would be quite useful right now.


	3. Luna's Drome Match

Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 3- Luna's Drome Match

As Luna entered the drome, she noticed Klay was already there with his usual over-confident grin.

"Ready to lose, lizard face?" he mockingly inquired

"Actually, I'm ready to put you in your place once and for all, ground kisser," Luna replied dryly

"We're about to see it,"

Meanwhile, Kaz was already watching her sister along with Tom, Peyton and Sarah.

"Go on, Luna! Show him who's boss!" Sarah cheered

"Kick his show off ass!" Peyton cried

"Do you think she will use that creature scan she got?" Tom commented

"It would not be prudent; what if everybody sees her creature? It would be a disaster!" Sarah replied

Meanwhile, Klay and Luna were getting their decks ready. Luna had already most of her deck; Ario, Vinta, Marquis Darini, Siado… but she was not sure if she should use Kaya or not… Klay was a very strong player, perhaps she would have to use him in an emergency… so; she decided to put Kaya on her deck as well. When they were both ready, they decks were shown. Klay noticed there was a Creature he had never seen before in the girl's deck… it had resemblance to a wolf. But it didn't matter! That Creature would be coded as well along with the others. Soon, the match started, and it was Klay who started the match.

"Lord van Bloot attacks Siado!" he announced before both players touched their creatures cards and transformed.

"She ACTUALLY is going to use that wolf," Peyton commented impressed

"I hope there won't be a commotion for this…" Kaz muttered under his breath

"oh, come on! It's not like anyone will notice it… I hope," Tom replied

Things were not going well for Luna, however.

**Siado vs. Van Bloot. Winner: Klayotic**

**Ulmar vs. Ario. Winner: Klayotic**

**Vinta vs. Takinom. Winner: Klayotic**

**Chaor vs. Marquis Darini. Winner: Klayotic**

Luna could not believe it; she only had ONE Creature left, and Klay still had his whole deck. There was no way out of this; her only hope would be that Kaya's scan would be good enough to defeat five Creatures in a row.

"Ready to give up, brat?" Klay taunted her mockingly once again

"I still have one Creature left, so there's still a chance for me!" Luna replied in anger

"Fine! I'll crush your stray doggie along with your lizards. Van Bloot attacks Kaya!"

Luna tried to calm herself down as she touched Kaya's scan and started to transform. She soon was in four legs, with fiery red fur all over her body and icy blue reptilian eyes.

"Let's get Chaotic," grinned Klay as Van Bloot.

Meanwhile, Luna's new scan had attracted the other players' attention.

"What's that Creature?" a female player commented

"I have never seen something like THAT!" other added

"I think it's one of the Creatures of the Forest," yet another replied

"Is it?"

"Oh, great. Now everybody will try to trade with her for that scan," Kaz hit his head into the table

"Let's first see how good that Creature is," Sarah tried to calm him down.

Meanwhile, Luna as Kaya was walking through the corridors of Iron Pillar. She felt strange with this new Creature; every vision, every smell, every sound was incredibly magnified. She could hear everything around her, even the faintest sound. Suddenly, she heard a sound from one of the corners, and evaded a Viperlash just in time. Wow, this Creature was very agile too…

"Beginner's luck!" Klay growled, "You won't save yourself the next time!"

"Just try it!" Luna growled baring her fangs just like a wolf would; she noticed Kaya's voice was deep.

Klay took flight and was launching Spirit Gusts at Luna; Luna was doing her best to avoid them, but she knew she had to attack… but she didn't know what attacks Kaya possessed. What happened next, however, was shocking even to herself. She felt a terrible aching in her throat, and when she opened her mouth, a greenish blue beam was sent out. Klay didn't expect this and was hit. However, he soon regained control of his flight and threw a Pebblestorm at Luna. She lost her footing and was falling straight towards the sharp rocks. However, she noticed she was also falling towards a pipe… she only would have ONE chance, so she could not fail. She launched another of that attack in the opposite direction of the pipe and due to the force she was pushed towards the pipe. And incredibly, she landed on her feet. Even Klay was looking in shock… how had she done that? There was no way any other Creature could have done that… that wolf-like Creature was not normal…

… But then he launched a Telekinetic Bolt at the Mipedian player. Luna heard it, however, and leaped towards another pipe just as the attack destroyed her previous footing. She landed on the other pipe safely, and discovered Kaya had the agility and speed of a cat. She kept leaping towards the upward pipes, avoiding attacks from Klay. Then a plan began to form in her mind… Klay dived towards her, and she decided to take that to her advantage. When Klay was close enough… she jumped into him. The only reason she did not fall was that Kaya's claws dug deep into Van Bloot's flesh; Klay struggled to get her off but it was no use. Wow, this girl was good… suddenly, a voice resounded in Luna's head.

_Go on ahead. Finish him off._

Luna felt her lips trembling and her fangs baring, but for some reason she could not control it. As if the fangs had a life of their own. She dug her fangs into van Bloot's flesh, and Klay screamed in pain. Those fangs were very sharp, and no matter how much he tried; he could not shake Luna off. Luna kept biting Klay in his back, and finally, his left wing. She tore it almost completely, but she could not stop; something inside her was inciting her to… actually, it felt as if it was Kaya fighting, not her. Klay felt a very sharp pain on his left wing, and suddenly he noticed he was falling towards the sharp rocks. Luna noticed this and quickly jumped from Klay's back to a nearby pipe. She could only watch as Klay fell into the darkness below…

Meanwhile, Kaz had his mouth wide open. Luna had defeated Klay! But that Creature she used… she had been very fierce when attacking Klay, just as a predator that finishes off its prey. Meanwhile, the other players were watching the match in amazement.

"That was great!" one commented

"She defeated Klay! And she's just a beginner!" Another added

"I wonder if she'll want to trade that card," a female player cut him off

"See? Now everyone will want to trade with her for that Creature," Kaz hit his head against the table

"I have to get one of those," Sarah added

"SARAH!"

"Hey, guys. The next match is about to begin," Tom pointed at the screen.

And so, the match continued…

**Ulmar vs. Kaya. Winner: Kaya**

**Kaya vs. Takinom. Winner: Kaya**

**Chaor vs. Kaya. Winner: Kaya**

After Luna walked into the Port Court, suddenly many players ran next to her.

"Lizarduna, do you want to trade that Creature for my Overworld Scans?" one spoke up

"Don't listen to him! Trade with me!" another retorted

Poor Luna had a hard time getting away from all the players that wanted to trade cards with her. It was only after her brother distracted the other players so that she could hide that she was safe… for now.

"Luna, that was amazing!" Tom congratulated her, "you defeated all of Klay's battle team with just that… what was his name?"

"Kaya," Luna replied

"Where did you scan him? I want to scan him, too!" Peyton pleaded

"Come on, guys! Give her chance to breath," Kaz told both of them in annoyance

"I encountered him in Mist Forest. He had attacked me, but he didn't code me… he let me go and let me scan him," Luna explained

"Well, can yo take us to where you first encountered him?" Sarah inquired

"Sure. But we should wait until the other players are gone, don't you think?"

"Don't worry, I told them you had gone to the Crellan Drome and would give your card to the one who defeated you," Kaz smirked slightly

"In that case, let's go before they come back," Luna crawled from under the table.

Then the five players quickly ran to the Port Court.

XOXOXOXO

In Mist Forest, Kaya was sleeping soundly on top of a fallen tree. But for some strange reason, he could not stop thinking about that human… he still had her image on his mind. She was just a pup. He could not kill a pup, even if it was the pup of another Tribe… actually, he had never seen a pup of other tribe, the few intruders that dared to wander off into Mist Forest had not gone back… only ONE had escaped, but he surely must had died long ago. Suddenly, he caught a familiar smell, a smell that was unknown to him… it could only mean one thing…

"The human is back,"


	4. They're Friends of Mine!

Chaotic- Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 4

Kaya sniffed the air, in search of the human he had met earlier; he was curious as to why she had gone back. Usually, the intruders they scared away would pray not to encounter them again, but this human had gone back to look for him… the Chezamon stopped when he smelled other essences… strangely enough; they were both similar and different from the smell to the human girl. Perhaps she had gone back with more humans… about three or four more humans. Kaya heard his name being called by a female voice nearby, he recognized the human's voice almost immediately; he then followed the calling.

Meanwhile, the five humans were walking around Mist Forest trying to find the red-ruffed Chezamon. Luna had been leading the way, often calling out for Kaya in hopes that he would appear, but for now there was no luck. Tom was getting every time more nervous, fearing that the other Chezamon might hear and attack them. After hearing a branch on the ground breaking nearby, Tom gulped the lump in his throat.

"What was that?" he mumbled

Luna sighed in frustration, "Like I told you before, it was just a branch. It there was a Chezamon following us, we wouldn't hear it at all,"

Tom rolled his eyes, "wow, that makes me feel better!"

They failed to notice the icy blue eyes that spied on them at that very moment. Kaya's doubts were confirmed when he saw the human had come back with more of her kind. Three males and one female… one of the males had black fur, another had orange fur, the fat one had brown fur, and the female had blonde fur…

"Kaya! Where are you?" Luna was calling out for him

The red-furred Chezamon peered up his ears and his pupils became slits, wondering if he should show himself or not… could those humans be trusted? The little human seemed trustworthy, but he didn't know about the others. what if they told even more humans about their whereabouts. However, another call from the humans caught his attention.

"Kaya, dude! Come on, we don't bite!" The brown-furred human called out.

'They don't bite?' what was that supposed to mean? From the looks of it, these humans did not have canines or fangs to bite, they didn't even look like they hunted their food at all… finally, his curiosity got the better of him.

Kaz whirled around when he heard the snap of another branch; then he froze in fear as he saw icy blue eyes peeking from one of the bushes.

"Guys…" he mumbled in terror

"What is it now, Kaz?" Sarah turned to face him in annoyance, but soon she froze as well.

Peyton, Luna and Tom twirled around to see what was wrong, and were startled from seeing the red-furred Chezamon they had been looking for. He was staring curiously at them, his ears pointing to the front. Luna smiled in excitement.

"Kaya, there you are!" he walked closer to the Chezamon, who in return gave a few steps back in caution when she tried to wrap her arms around his neck.

"That's… Kaya?" Tom walked a bit closer, but not too much, he wanted to remain on the Creature's good side for now.

"Why did you come back?" Kaya spoke up, his voice as deep as it had been in the Drome Match.

"Dude, let us have a scan of you!" Peyton was the first to speak in a pleading tone, "Luna fought as you and she creamed Klay!"

Kaya tilted his head slightly, confused, "fought as me? What's that supposed to mean?"

"See, you remember I asked you to let me scan you, right?" Luna decided to explain him, "in Chaotic, I can become you and fight, with your same attacks and abilities."

Kaya still didn't understand anything.

"What's a Chaotic?" he scratched his head

"It's a long story," Sara replied while staring at him from feet to head, "anyway, the point is that Luna easily defeated Klay, we'll explain you who he is later, when she fought with your scan. We asked her to bring us here to see if we could scan you too,"

Kaya turned to look at her, his pupils turning into slits, which sent a chill down Sara's spine.

"First, I need to know more about you, humans…"

"We should start by our names," Tom decided to introduce himself and the others, "my name is Tom,"

Then he pointed at Kaz, Peyton and Sarah respectively, "those are Kaz, Peyton and Sara,"

"And I'm Luna, we meet earlier," Luna waved her hand

Kaya couldn't contain a small smile; yep, these humans could be trusted. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to let them scan him, too… however, a sound caught his attention. He looked around in alarm, hoping it was not what he thought…

"What's wrong?" Kaz got closer to him in concern…

…And a flash of gray came out of the bushes.

"LOOK OUT!" Kaya tackled Kaz out of the way, and the Creature missed its chance. It stopped a few steps away from the group, and the humans could see its features more clearly. It had the same body structure and appearance as Kaya, but this Chezamon was more slim and it had dark gray fur with silver underbelly, nose, paws and undertail. its ears were of a darker tone of gray, and he was wearing some kind of goggles. It was looking at Kaya in shock, its pupils were slits. Kaya prevented his fellow Chezamon from attacking the humans

"Kaya, what are you doing?" the gray-furred Chezamon growled, his fur bristling as he spoke, "why are you protecting those intruders?"

"They're not like the others!" Kaya replied, his pupils turning into slits as well, "they can be trusted!"

"How do you know?"

Tom, Kaz, Peyton, Sara and Luna were startled by this new voice. They looked around frenetically, and spotted another Chezamon coming out of the bushes. Their terror began, however, when they noticed other three were coming out.

Peyton in fear, "base, we have a problem,"

One of the Chezamon had golden eyes, dark brown fur with sandy belly, face and legs. The other three were a bit more colorful than the others. One had solid blue fur with white underbelly, legs and nose. He had navy blue back, fingers, ears and the tip of his tail was dark blue as well; his eyes were of a pale gray color. The second had dark red fur, with lilac fingers, a line running down his eyes and tail. His underbelly and nose were pure white, his eyes were golden. The last Chezamon had different patterns of dark and light brown all over his body, with dark gray ears and crimson red eyes.

However, they were all looking at them with distrustful and wary eyes.

"Look, its okay!" Kaz tried to get on their good side, "if you don't want us here, we'll leave,"

"Silence, human!" the red and lilac Chezamon growled

"Cool it down, Shaoran!" Kaya growled

"Kaya, why do you protect those intruders?" the gray Chezamon decided to try it by the good way

"They're friends of mine,"

Luna smiled when she heard the word 'friends' escape from Kaya's mouth. He trusted them! But obviously, the others didn't… she decided to break the tension.

"Don't worry, it's okay." Luna walked past Kaya, who looked at her as if she was insane.

"_What's she thinking? Doesn't she know they can tear her to pieces in seconds?_" he thought in shock, fearing for her life.

The other Chezamon were as confused and shocked as he was; why wasn't she afraid? She was speaking to them as if they were not threat at all. Luna came to a halt a few steps from them.

"Luna, come back here!" Kaz cried in terror

"Careful with the fangs!" Peyton added, flinching at the sight of their fangs.

"Look, I'll stand here," Luna smiled, "you can attack me if you want, and I won't defend myself,"

Luna stood still, expecting the Chezamon to lunge at her. however, they just were staring at her in confusion.

"_she's brave, for a human…_" the blue Chezamon thought as his pupils began to dilate and he softened.

Sara noticed the Chezamon were starting to calm down, their pupils dilating.

"I think they're becoming docile," she whispered

"I hope so, I don't want to be their snack," Tom commented

"I heard you," the brown Chezamon growled lightly, startling Tom.

Kaya dilated his pupils as well.

"Guys," he spoke to his fellow Chezamon, and pointed at the humans in the order they introduced to him, "those are Tom, Kaz, Peyton, Sara and Luna,"

"Hi, there," Peyton smiled a bit nervous, hoping they were not planning to have them for a snack or something…

"Humans are quite weird…" the crimson-eyed Chezamon commented, staring at the humans, "they only have fur in their heads,"

"that is Jerome," Kaya introduced him to the humans, and turned to the other Chezamon, "and those are Rocket, Sorka and Razor," he pointed at the blue, gray and brown Chezamon respectively before turning to the red and lilac Chezamon, "I think you already know Shaoran,"

Shaoran grunted and looked away; he had hoped to take out some more humans for the day.

"Is he always that grouchy or only when humans are involved?" Sara commented

"Nice to meet you!" Peyton extended his hand to Rocket to greet him.

… But he just stared at the human's hand, confused.

"… If you want me to smell it, forget about it," he growled softly

"No, no, no, it's a greeting," Kaz decided to enter the conversation

Jerome, Shaoran, Sorka and Razor got closer and stared at Peyton's hand for a while.

"Nothing's happening," Jerome tilted his head

"I need one of you to give me your hand… or paw," Peyton grinned

The Chezamon were hesitant at first, but eventually Rocket decided to try. He slowly lifted his paw, his ears flattened against his head. This human greeting was very strange… when his paw touched Peyton's hand; the human grabbed and shook it.

"That's called a handshake, pal," Peyton explained, "but you might call it pawshake,"

"Why can humans stand on their back legs all the time?" Jerome was staring at Sara in curiosity

"We're bipedal, we walk on two legs," Sara explained, although the Chezamon being so close to her was making her quire nervous. Those fangs seemed sharp…

"Speaking of which," Kaya turned to face Luna, "how did you disappear after we first met?"

Luna took her yellow scanner out, "I used my scanner, with it I can port to anywhere in Perim, as long as I have the Location scan,"

Sorka examined the Scanner more closely and sniffed it; it had the scent of Luna everywhere.

"Wait, you can teleport anywhere in Perim with this device?" he inquired

"Yep, and we can also scan Creatures, Battlegear and Mugic," Tom explained while taking out his own scanner

"So that means you know about the other Tribes?" Shaoran walked closer to the humans; perhaps those humans could help them…

Kaz nodded, "well, yeah,"

"It's getting late," Razor looked at the sky, noticing it would be night soon, "we should go back to the Den,"

"Den? That's where you live?" Tom inquired,

"Yeah," Kaya replied

Luna stepped to the front hopefully, "can we go with you?"

Shaoran, however, was still wary about those humans, "no!" he growled while bristling his fur

Luna gave a few steps back in shock; Kaya turned to see Shaoran and threw him a dagger glare

"Don't be so harsh on her!" he growled

"Hey, if we can't go with you, at least would you let us scan you?" Peyton took his scanner out hopefully

Kaya turned to see his companions, who looked confused and hesitant. Sorka was the first to step to the front,

"Scan," he stood still.

Tom pointed his scanner at the Chezamon and scanned him. Jerome and Rocket saw the light stream coming out of the scanner, but it didn't seem to hurt Sorka. They stepped forward as well; Shaoran was hesitant at first, but eventually gave up and stepped forward as well. Kaz scanned Shaoran, Peyton scanned Rocket and Sara scanned Shaoran. Suddenly, the group heard a how in the distance. Kaya turned to see the humans.

"We must go now," he told them as his companions rushed towards the source of the sound, he twirled around to follow them

"Wait!" Luna called out, "when will we see you again?"

Kaya turned his head to face her, "the others and I patrol this area every morning. If you're lucky we might encounter again."

Then he disappeared into the depths of the forest. Tom, Kaz, Peyton and Sara were chekinc their new scans.

**Razor**

**Gender: male**

**Tribe: Chezamon**

**Courage: 30**

**Power: 45**

**Wisdom: 70**

**Speed: 25**

**Energy: 45**

**Mugic counters: 1**

**Shaoran:**

**Gender: male**

**Tribe: Chezamon**

**Courage: 50**

**Power: 40**

**Wisdom: 30**

**Speed:25**

**Energy: 55**

**Mugic counters: 2**

**Rocket**

**Gender: male**

**Tribe: Chezamon**

**Courage: 40**

**Power: 25 **

**Wisdom: 30**

**Speed: 60**

**Energy: 45 **

**Mugic counters: 1**

**Jerome**

**Gender: male**

**Tribe: Chezamon**

**Courage: 40**

**Power:25**

**Wisdom: 30**

**Speed: 45**

**Energy: 60**

**Mugic counters: 0**

"dude, Rocket is very fast," Peyton commented

"that's nothing! Shaoran's tougher!" Kaz replied

Sara sighed in annoyance, "guys, hate to in interrupt, but we should go back to Chaotic,"

"she is right, it will be night soon. And I don't want to know who dwells this place at night," Tom looked around, fearing there might be nocturnal hunters in that forest.

Soon after, the humans ported out of the forest.


	5. Mist Forest Tour

Chaotic: Legend of The Chezamon

Chapter 5- Mist Forest Tour

Since they got the Chezamon scans, the group was constantly harassed by players who wanted to trade. No matter how many times they refused to trade, the other players didn't give up so easily; the group had been offered the rarest Scans, yet they refused to trade their precious Chezamon. In fact, it was because of those scans that they were now invincible in the drome matches; Kaz wanted to go to Mist Forest for more scans, but Luna didn't want to bother Kaya and the others so often. In that moment, Tom, Kaz, Sarah and Luna were watching Peyton's drome match, who was battling as Rocket. He had lost only one Creature, and was creaming his opponent completely. The last match was on Kiru City; his opponent was playing as Ulmar.

One of the advantages of the Chezamon Creatures was their exceptional smelling and hearing sense, which they could use at their advantage. Their vision was quite strange, though; they saw everything in color, but when trying to find opponents, they would start seeing everything in black and white. Apparently, the Chezamon could see the heat of other Creature's body, just as snakes. One of the disadvantages was the fact that Chezamon were completely quadruped, and had no thumbs… in other words, Peyton had trouble when he wanted to use Battlegear, as he could only use his fangs to grab it.

But other than that, the Chezamon were almost invincible. Peyton was having trouble using his sense of smell, however.

"Guess Rockie had a cold when I scanned him," Peyton as Rocket muttered under his breath. A sound caught his attention, and the Mipedian player ducked just in time to avoid a Spirit Gust. Ulmar growled in frustration and used his Pyroblaster on the Chezamon, but to no avail. Rocket's speed was very high.

"You know, Peyton's doing better than the last time," Kaz commented, back on the table, as he took a sip from his soda.

"The last time he played as Rocket, he was having trouble walking on all fours," laughed Tom as another player came closer, "I'm not trading,"

The player accepted the answer and left in disappointment.

"I'm getting sick of all this trading offers!" Sarah growled while deleting all the messages and trade offers from her scanner, "why can't they go to Mist Forest and scan some Chezamon themselves?"

"Perhaps because we befriended some Chezamon, and they might help us to get more scans," Luna suggested while looking at Peyton's match.

Rocket (Peyton), meanwhile, was launching a Howling Burst to Ulmar, who was sent flying against a wall. The Underworlder decided to counterattack.

"Ember Swarm!"

Rocket opened his eyes in shock and quickly darted away, looking for cover. One of the fireballs struck him, however, and he fell to the ground with a loud thud; the air smelled like burned fur. Rocket stood up faster than Ulmar expected, however, and decided to end the match at once.

_Attack… kill him…_

He lunged at Ulmar, baring his fangs, and dug his fangs into his neck, coding him and ending the match…

"Way to go, Peyton!" Tom exclaimed after rejecting another trading request.

Luna was lost in thought, however; she remembered the first time she played as Kaya. The voice that incited her to finish Klay off… did Peyton hear it do?

"This is why we should go to look for more scans! Who knows what Battlegear or Mugic we might discover!" Kaz pointed out

Sarah sighed in annoyance, "and do you think the Chezamon will simply let us go in and out of their territory just because we befriended some of them?"

"Who knows? Perhaps we can earn their trust,"

Peyton walked in, a victorious grin upon his face.

"Hey, Peyton! You completely creamed that Underworld player!" Tom grinned as well

"Dude, I didn't know Rockie was so agile! Perhaps that's why he was named Rocket, he's as fast as one!"

Luna decided to ask Peyton, "Hey, Peyton, did you hear a voice when you were battling?"

The four players turned to see her in confusion.

"Voice?" Kaz inquired, a worried tone notable in his voice.

"Like a ghost speaking in your head?" Peyton added

Luna nodded, "yeah, something like that,"

"Now that you mention it, when I played as Jerome I felt as if something told me to simply attack," Sarah remembered her most recent match, where she had heard this voice…

"Creepy," Peyton added

Kaz thought it might be a good chance to go back to Mist Forest, "hey, guys, what do you think about going to Mist Forest and ask Kaya and the others about this?"

"Why do you think they would tell us?" Tom pointed out

Kaz shrugged, "I don't know, perhaps they might know something about this,"

Luna sighed in defeat, "Alright, let's go… just try not to make them angry,"

The five players headed for the Port Court, not knowing they had been heard...

XOXOXOXOXO

Rocket was not happy.

He and Kaya had been assigned to guard the northern range of Mist Forest while Shaoran, Jerome and the others were in the Den, guarding the Reserves. Actually, he thought it was a punishment because of Kaya's little sideshow the last night…

"Come on, Rocket! I already told you I'm sorry!" Kaya protested, catching up with his partner

Rocket just grunted, not even looking at him.

"How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?"

"I'll tell you when it's enough," Rocket growled under his breath, again not looking at the red-furred Chezamon.

Kaya sighed in annoyance; every time Rocket was mad at him, he would not speak to him at all, and never bothered to look at him. Usually, he calmed down after a day or two… a sound caught his attention.

"Did you hear d that?" Kaya peered his ears to the front, looking around in alarm

Rocket growled in annoyance, "I'm not falling for it this time,"

"No, really, I heard something…"

The red-furred Chezamon sniffed the air and warily neared the bushes he had heard the sound from. It was getting louder, louder… Rocket's curiosity got the better of him and he walked closer to the bushes as well, now hearing the sound as well. It sounded like footsteps… both Chezamon expected the footsteps to come from a stray animal or something, but didn't expect a human to come out of the bushes. A VERY familiar human.

"Oh, it's you," Rocket relaxed and stepped back, giving Luna some space to come out of the bushes

Kaz, Tom, Sarah and Peyton came right behind her, panting heavily.

"Guys, do you ever bother in cutting the grass around here?" Tom panted while wiping sweat from his forehead, "I cut my hand for about five times!"

"What is it you need?" Kaya sat down, looking expectantly at the humans.

Sarah set her eyes on the red-furred Chezamon, "we wanted to ask you something. Are you guys psychic or something?"

"What?" Kaya tilted his head in confusion

"See, when we play as you, we hear this weird voices out of the blue. They tell us 'kill it', 'finish it off', and things like that," Kaz explained, "do you guys hear voices?"

"I see you have heard the Prey Drive," Rocket replied,

"Prey Drive?"

"I've heard about it, Amigo," Peyton spoke up, "meat-eating animals have something like an alarm in their brains that tells them to go after prey and kill it,"

"Exactly," Rocket was quite impressed. He hadn't expected humans to know about Prey Drive, "how do you know? Are you predators too?"

Luna was repulsed at the thought, "no! not exactly… we DO eat meat, but we also eat vegetables, fish, and other things… it's just that in Ear-… where we come from, there are predatory animals like you called wolves,"

"Wolves?"

"They kinda look like you, but they're… smaller, less scary, and they can't speak…" Tom added

"Anyway, we also came here to ask if you had some Battlegear or Mugic for us to scan," Kaz talked out loud, but upon seeing the look on the Chezamon's face grew nervous, "I mean, if you don't mind…"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but we don't bring Battlegear or Mugic out of the Den unless we go to explore new territory," Rocket replied

"Can we go to the Den?" Peyton inquired while stepping forward a bit

"Take you to the DEN? It would be easier to put ME on a diet!" Kaya growled softly, "if any other Hunters see you they won't think twice about dealing with you!"

"Even if we could sneak you into the Den, you can't just walk around as if you lived there," Rocket backed up

Sarah smirked a bit, "don't worry, we've dealt with more difficult situations than that! We've gone to the other Tribes cities and scanned Mugic and Battlegear with no problem!"

THIS caught the Chezamon's attention.

"You've been to the other Tribes' Dens?"

Peyton nodded, "yeah. You know, Kiru City, Mount Pillar, Mipedian Desert,"

"Don't you guys know about the other Tribes?" Tom inquired

Rocket shook his head

"No, we're not allowed to go outside the territory,"

"So you've never been out of Mist Forest?"

Tom looked away, "I wouldn't be surprised if the other Tribes didn't know anything about you guys, either,"

"They don't. I have heard that the other Tribes in Perim think our forest is haunted, because every intruder that has put a foot in here never goes back,"

"What do you guys do to the intruders?"

Kaya was about to answer when Rocket discretely smacked his rear part with his legs, the red-furred Chezamon understood.

"We are not allowed to tell that information to strangers,"

The Chaotic players were quite disappointed with that answer; apparently, although the Chezamon had taken liking to them, they still did not trust them enough to tell them about that. Apparently, they would have to wait until they had earned some more degree of trust, and then perhaps the Chezamon would tell them about that.

"Can you guys at least show us interesting places around here?" Kaz sighed, half-expecting the Chezamon to say they couldn't.

Kaya thought for a moment, then turned to look at his blue-furred partner, "we could show them Mist Lake, the others won't bother if we take them there for a while,"

"That's a bad idea. If Hukaro finds out we took outsiders to the lake, he'll skin us alive and dance over our graves!"

"He won't find out! He's too busy barking orders at the Hunters in the Den,"

"Who's Hukaro?" Sarah inquired, whoever he was he sounded like he had the same attitude as Odu-Bathax.

"He's the Beta Male, the second in command. The only problem is that he's very stern! He doesn't let us roam the Den at night unless we're patrolling, and he sometimes can exaggerate when it comes to accidents,"

"Like the incident YOU had today," Rocket muttered under his breath,

"I already said I'm sorry!"

"That Hukaro sound worse than Chaor when he's having a bad day," Kaz commented,

Kaya turned to the humans once again, "well, where do you want to go? There's Mist Lake, Silver Cliffs, Akotash Clearing,"

"How about the Drakdeer Plains?"

"I thought you didn't like the idea!"

"Hey, if we're going to do this, we should at least do it well,"

Luna and the other Chaotic players grinned; those two were like bickering siblings.

"Well, how about we take a look at Mist Lake?" Kaz suggested

"Great! Follow me!" Kaya smirked excitedly as he turned and headed for a random direction.

Rocket rolled his eyes in annoyance, "Kaya, Mist Lake's the other way,"

Kaya blushed deeply and twirled around before walking towards the direction Rocket pointed out. The humans laughed as they went after the red-furred Chezamon, but Rocket was still worried.

"_I hope Hukaro's not on the lake or we're dead_," he thought as he followed his partner into the depths of the forest.


	6. Mist Forest Tour Part 2

Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 6- Mist Forest Tour Part 2

Kaya peeked out his head form the bushes, making sure there were no Hunters around. He and Rocket had been looking for the least-guarded shore of the lake so that the humans could scan it without worrying about getting caught. When he was sure the coast was clear, Kaya wagged his tail; Rocket and the humans were hiding behind some bushes, and saw his signal tail wagging.

"It's clear. Let's go," Rocket walked out of the bushes, Kaya following.

Luna and the other humans followed soon after, and what they saw amazed them. In front of them was the shore of a crystal-clear blue lake, surrounded by hundreds of trees that seemed to touch the sky, and the sky itself could be seen, unlike the previous regions where you could only see the branches of the trees. As for the lake, there was a slight mist on the edges of the water, which apparently gave it its name. Strange-looking birds were flying around, but some of them were drinking on the shallow water. These particular birds were tall with long necks and legs, but their plumage was purple, and their heads were almost reptilian-like, with two pairs of eyes and cat ears. Their tails were long and ended in a spike.

"One of the most popular hobbies here is chasing storkrans," Kaya grinned while wagging his tail

Tom took a look to the birds drinking water, "stor-what? You mean those mutant birds over there?"

"Storkrans! Besides, they're not mutant!"

"Not for YOU, at least,"

Luna took out her scanner, soon followed by her brother, Tom, Peyton and Sarah, and the humans scanned the lake. Suddenly, a gigantic crocodile-like head came out of the water and caught one of the storkrans, scaring off the birds. The creature then dived back into the water.

"What… was… that?" Sarah kept staring agape at the spot where the storkran once stood.

"That was a Tsunergal," Rocket explained, "Those guys love to catch storkrans to eat… or to play around. Those guys don't know the line between curiosity and predatory behavior; sometimes they 'play' with Storkrans they don't intend to eat. You'd better not get into the lake to swim where Storkrans gather to rest…"

Kaya peered up his ears, "speaking of which, what do you think Shaoran, Jerome and the others are doing?"

"Whatever they're doing, I hope it doesn't have anything to do with patrolling the lake, or we'll be in trouble,"

"You know, Shaoran doesn't seem to like us in the least, so I feel more comfortable when he's not around," Kaz commented in low voice

"Don't worry, he has that attitude with strangers, but once you get to know him, you see that he is actually a nice guy,"

Suddenly, there was a howl in the distance. Both Chezamon peered up their ears, their pupils gone to slits. What could the Healers possibly need now? As if there weren't enough Hunters back at the Den.

"Great, what now?" Kaya muttered under his breath.

Rocket frowned, "I don't know you, but you OWE me one!"

"Would you forget about it, Rocket?"

"Besides, remember that soon your shift will be over, and you'll be scurrying off to take a nap somewhere, anyway,"

Kaya looked up for a minute and a smile drew on his furry face.

"Well, thinking again, I guess the Healers will need someone to pick out herbs or something,"

Peyton tilted his head to one side, "so, Kaya's going back to the Den? What about our tour?"

Kaya sighed, "don't worry, I'll send Shaoran to catch up with you; it's his shift now, anyway,"

"Err… can't you send someone less… serious? Like Jerome or something?" Kaz scratched his head nervously, remembering their last encounter with Shaoran had not been very pleasant in the least.

"Sorry, can't do that. Jerome has a shift in the Inner Chamber,"

"Well, you should go! You know how Razor gets when you take too long," Rocket ushered his teammate away, not wanting another episode with Razor.

Kaya nodded and ran off into the bushes, eventually the sound of his footsteps diminished until the forest was completely silent except for the sound of the water of the lake crashing against the rocks. When the red-furred Chezamon was gone, Rocket turned to see the humans,

"Well, we should go now. The lake patrol should be making their rounds around here soon,"

Sarah inquired, "Hey, what happened in the Den that you're so upset with Kaya?"

Rocket sighed in frustration, "He was supposed to look after the pups, but he fell asleep- for about the tenth time- and they scurried out of the Inner Chamber. He dragged me to find the pups before Hukaro found out… unfortunately, the pups had sneaked into Hukaro's chamber, and he was REALLY mad about it. In fact, he seemed to know Kaya was responsible for it, so he assigned him to patrol the Forest borders as punishment. To enworse things, he thought I was to blame as well and assigned to patrol along with Kaya,"

Tom could see Rocket was, indeed, upset about the whole thing. However, a distant sound alerted Rocket, and he turned towards the direction of the sound.

"The sentries are coming! We have to go!"

"But where are we going?" Tom asked in shock as he and his friends struggled to follow the Chezamon through the vegetation of the forest.

"I think the Silver Cliffs should be free of patrols right now! Follow me!"

The blue-furred Chezamon made a sharp turn to the left, which the humans had trouble to imitate. In fact, Peyton could not stop and ran into Kaz, throwing them both to the ground. Rocket stopped abruptly and ran back to the humans as Tom and Luna helped them stand up.

"Rockie, could you slow down a bit? Humans don't have the elastic legs you guys have!" Peyton muttered while shaking dirt off his pants.

"Sorry, but I could not risk being caught hanging out with humans –no offense-," Rocket blushed, which in contrast to his blue fur, gave his cheeks a purplish tone.

"No offended," Tom grinned

"Anyway, where are the Silver Cliffs you mentioned?" Sarah inquired

"The Silver Cliffs are a chain of small mountains reaching high over Mist Forest; actually, I think you could see all of the Overworld if you climbed the highest peak," Rocket explained, "if you're lucky, perhaps you might see the Sky Guard flying around the peak-"

Luna gave him a confused look, "the Sky Guard? What's that?"

"It's hard to explain; you'll have to see for yourselves."

The five humans followed Rocket into the bushes and through the trees… this time at a slow pace.

XOXOXOXO

"I'm telling you, Maxxor! There are Creatures living in the Forest!"

Maxxor closed his eyes and rubbed his temples once again as Bodal tried to find words to describe what he had been through in the Forest of Life; the Keeper of the Arsenal had gone there to try and find a Roth shards, stones which could increase the sharpness of weapons and their range of attack, but he claimed to have been attacked by someone- or rather, something- when he tried to go deeper into the forest. Luckily, he managed to get away, but he insisted that perhaps they should sent an exploration team to explore the deepest parts of the Forest of Life; Bodal thought that perhaps there could be more undiscovered reserves of Roth Shards in those parts, and the best would be to discover them before any of the other Tribes did. However, Bodal's attempts to persuade Maxxor had been unsuccessful.

Maxxor let out a frustrated sigh, "Bodal, we've sent hundreds of exploration teams into the heart of the forest, but none of them have returned. I don't see the case in wasting any more soldiers in exploring that cursed region,"

"I insist, Maxxor! Those lands could be the richest source of Roth shards we could get our hands on!" Bodal persisted, starting to get annoyed

"Besides, Lomma, Intress and other warriors claim to have seen strange Creatures lurking in the depths of the Forest; I already have enough trouble with the Underworlders than having to deal with another angry Creature,"

Despite his words, Maxxor wasn't quite sure of what they said. He still remembered his father telling him stories of a sixth Tribe living in the depths of the Forest of Life, but he had never actually believed them. But Bodal's speech and the disappeared exploration teams was starting to change his point of view on those stories. However, those legends were not worth of sending team after team to their dooms, less with the M'arrillians lurking in the farthest corners of Perim, waiting for the moment to recover their strength. And with the rest of the Tribes still trying to invade the Overworld, he didn't need a lack of soldiers again.

"Please, leave." The Overworld leader finally spoke up, "I have many things to think about,"

Bodal nodded, with a defeated look on his face, and quietly left the room, not wanting to annoy his king any further. When he left, Maxxor headed for one of his man bookcases and searched for a book in particular; after some time he took out a small black book with golden linings from the bookcase, which he recognized as his father's journal when the latter used to go exploring the Forest of Life. All this thing of "gray-colored Creatures" had pricked his curiosity, and what a better thing to read than Kiru's journal. Maxxor opened the book and searched through the pages until he found what he was looking for: a page which had a drawing of the Forest of Life. Unlike other maps he had seen, however, this map had a great dark green spot in the center of the Forest and it expanded to the areas which had not yet been discovered. On one corner of the page, there was writing.

_Forest of Life, Lost Creek._

"_Three days have passed. Three days since I tried to go further into the unexplored regions of the Forest. No matter from where I try to go, I am always attacked by these mysterious Creatures with fur as dark as the sky when a storm approaches, and with eyes of the color of the sun. Most of my men were not able to escape from these beasts, and their fate is unknown. The surviving warriors insist on returning to the city, for they did not want to have another encounter with those Creatures. I must admit, even I can feel fear growing in the depths of my being; fear for the fates of my comrades, fear for the mysterious beasts that haunt the Forest of Life. But overall… fear for the fate of my Tribe. Our sources of Roth Shards are running out, and I believe the unexplored depths of the Forest of Life may contain the rickets reserves of that precious shard. But it seems that it will be impossible to explore the forest unless an entire army is brought to the forest. I fear I will have to postpone the exploration of the forest until things between the Overworld and the rest of the Tribes have cooled down._

_Kiru, Leader of the Overworld."_

Maxxor sighed as he closed the book and sat back in his chair, thinking about the writing. Kiru claimed an army would be needed to explore all of Mist Forest, but with things running foul between the Tribes, he needed every warrior available should Chaor attempt an attack on Kiru City

… But he knew someone who could go into Mist Forest with no problem at all…

XOXOXOXO

"Rocket, how high is this forsaken mountain?"

Kaz inhaled and exhaled deeply in exhaustion while attempting to climb the rocky path that led to the lowest peak of the mountain. Luna and Sarah were having no problem at all, but he, Peyton and Tom were already having difficulty breathing due to the pressure of air. It seemed as if all the Forest of Life was below them, which sent shivers down their spine; if anyone fell from where they were, it surely would not be pleasant. Shaoran had caught up to them when they had arrived at the base of the mountain, but he was clearly annoyed when the humans started complaining about the height of the mountain and claimed that their feet ached.

"You humans have no stamina at all!" he commented in annoyance, "what do you do in your free time? Lie in the bed and look at the ceiling?"

"Yes and no," Tom panted heavily, "we watch T.V or play the computer,"

But the Chezamon obviously had no idea what a T.V or a computer were, so Tom decided to drop the subject.

An idea was forming in Peyton's mind, "hey, Shaory, how about we climb on your backs and you take us all the way to the peak?"

Shaoran was incensed, not only by the nickname Peyton was calling him, but what he had proposed, "what do you think I am? A Skeletal Steed?"

"Actually, that might be a nice idea," Rocket added, "with their lack of stamina, it'll take us forever to reach the Silver Cliffs. Perhaps we should let them climb on our back and we'll do the rock climbing,"

"That would… *pant*… be nice… *pant*… if you don't mind…" Sarah panted heavily, her tiredness already getting the better of her

"I doubt they could keep their grip on us if they can't even climb a small mountain," Shaoran growled

"SMALL?" Tom groaned, "you dare calling this mountain small?"

"Hey, compared to the highest peak of Silver Cliffs, this is just a hill,"

Rocket rolled his eyes and rested on the solid rocks, "Luna, you, Sarah and Tom climb on my back,"

"Wait a minute; you're going to leave us with…?" Kaz set his eyes on the red/purple Chezamon, and then looked back at Rocket, "please tell me you're kidding!"

"Oh, come on, Kazzy! I doubt Rocket can carry all of us in his back, unless he can grow bigger!"

"Come on, Kazdan," Shaoran let a smirk draw on his lips, "I don't bite… much…"

Kaz, however, gulped when Shaoran rested and Peyton climbed on his back; the Chezamon looked expectantly at him.

"So, are you coming or would you rather climb about 6 meters?" he teased

Kaz thought for a moment, and decided that riding a giant wolf could not be worse than climbing 6 meters of narrow rocks. He resigned himself and fearfully yet decidedly climbed onto the Chezamon's back and immediately took a hold of Peyton's shirt when Shaoran stood up. Rocket looked at the humans on his back.

"Hold on tight, it's going to be a wild ride,"

Without warning, the two Chezamon gave a jump and landed on a higher rock, almost giving the humans a heart attack. As Rocket and Shaoran jumped from rock to rock, Luna and the others dug their nails on their flesh, fearing to fall in any of those "hellish" jumps. Kaz was terrified; this felt worse than the rodeo he and Luna watched every weekend in TV, and to enworse things he was always terrified of heights. Shaoran could smell fear emanating from the red-furred human on his back, but didn't say anything; he could almost see the Silver Cliffs. After about 15 more minutes, the Chezamon landed on a solid cliff, high above Mist Forest: the cliff itself was very large, about the size of a soccer field, overlooking all over Mist Forest. Even Mist Lake looked like a small lagoon from there. On the rocky wall on one of the sides there were large holes, they looked like dens or nests; the wall itself was part of the rest of the mountain, but clouds blocked the view of the highest peak of chain of mountains, which clearly was even higher than the cliff they were actually standing on. Shaoran and Rocket rested so that the humans could get off their backs; Kaz literally threw himself from Shaoran's back to the cold stone, his face tinted a bit green.

"Hey, I didn't know humans could change color," Rocket commented while taking a closer look to the human

"We don't, at all," Luna explained, "Kaz is just dizzy, that's all,"

"Well, sorry for not being used to riding a 3 meter tall wolf!" Kaz snapped while standing up.

"Take a look at this!" Sarah was overlooking at Mist Forest, amazed at how high they were. The only other time she had ever been this high was when she had climbed to Mount Pillar's peak to scan Oipoint's Lookout, but even the cliff seemed to be higher than the peak of Mount Pillar.

Tom and Peyton were taking a look at the 'holes' on the wall of the mountain, those caves were about the size of a rhinoceros. They took a peek inside one of the caves, and noticed there was what looked like a bed made of hay and straw.

"Dude, who lives here?" Peyton inquired while trying to resist the temptation to enter the cave and rest on the hay

"Those are the Sky Guard's beds," Rocket explained

Tom groaned, "Again with the Sky Guard? What's a Sky Guard anyway?"

A high-pitched howl alerted the humans. They looked around frenetically for the source.

"What was that?" Kaz yelped in shock.

"Sounds like Kazehana is back from his rounds," Shaoran commented while looking up at the sky.

Sarah turned to look at him, "Kazehana? Who's that?"

"That's Kazehana," Rocket replied while pointing at the sky with his paw.

The five humans looked towards the clouds to see a large Creature flying around in circles, descending. It seemed as if he had noticed their presence and was coming down to investigate. Tom, Kaz, Peyton and Sarah stepped back in fear, having to drag Luna since she wanted to stay where she was and meet the newcomer. After a while, the giant Creature landed on the cliff and let out another of its high-pitched howls.

Kazehana, Shaoran and Rocket called him. However, he looked nothing like the Chezamon Hunters. He was much taller, about 25 ft in height, and he was as long as two cars parked behind one another. His slender neck was very long, as well as his pointy black ears, and his tail which ended in black feathers. His legs were quite thicker and more elegant-looking. The most notable characteristic of this Chezamon was its pair of bird-like silver and black wings, which he folded on his back. Kazehana had silver fur with white underbelly, and legs, with a black snout, ears and paws.

In short, Kazehana was like a crossbreed of a griffin and a dragon.

Kazehana set his piercing green eyes on the humans; both hostility and curiosity could be seen in his slit pupils. Humans? How had they climbed all the way there? Actually, how had they gotten there in the first place? However, his answer came when he noticed Rocket and Shaoran were there as well. The winged-Chezamon turned towards Rocket and Shaoran with a questioning look.

"…Shaoran, Rocket, how did these humans get here?"

Rocket gulped; Kazehana's serious tone sounded like he was not in the mood for visitors, "well, Kazehana, these are…"

"Hey there, Kaze!" Peyton cheered, trying to break the tension, "my name is Peyton, and those are my friends, Tom, Kaz, Sarah and Luna!"

The Mipedian player flinched when Kazehana set his eyes on him; however, this time, rather than hostility, he could see there was confusion in his stare.

"Kaze?"

"Just to warn you, that humans tends to call everyone with nicknames," Shaoran growled softly, "he calls me Shaory,"

Kazehana raised an eyebrow, "Shaory?"

"Wait until you hear the nickname he calls me with," Rocket muttered under his breath.

"Anyway, we came here to get a few scans," Sarah explained while taking her scanner out, "speaking of which, do you guys mind if we scan this place?"

"That does not explain how you convinced these two to bring you all the way up here," Kazehana growled softly

"Well, Kaya told Rocket and Shaoran to bring us here-" Luna was cut-off by a growl from the winged Chezamon

"Kaya? I should have guessed it…" he sighed in frustration.

"You… know Kaya?" Tom inquired

"He's got quite a reputation around these parts. His easygoing attitude is always getting him into trouble with his superiors,"

"Guys, the scans!" Kaz reminded his friends as he took out his scanner.

Shaoran decided to explain it to Kazehana before he took conclusions without asking, like always, "hey, Kazehana, these humans will use those devices they call Scanners to take a scan of the cliff- and probably a scan of you as well- but don't worry, it's completely harmless,"

The winged Chezamon seemed to accept the explanation and sat down, watching as a strange beam shot out of the humans' devices towards the edge of the cliff. However, he felt a chill run down his spine when they pointed their Scanners at him. When those beams shot out, he half-expected to feel a excruciating pain in his entire body, but he calmed down when he realized nothing happened. Luna examined her new Kazehana scan, and saw he could use both Air and Earth attacks.

"Wow, you sure are pretty tough," Sarah smirked as she checked Kazehana's stats.

"I can't wait to use this scan!" Kaz smirked, dying to challenge Herculeon to a rematch.

Kazehana couldn't help but smile quite a bit; these humans were not so bad at all. Actually, he had not seen any humans. He had only heard descriptions of them from the Hunters that were sent to Silver Cliffs to report an assignment from Hukaro or any of the Nobles. These described humans as being annoying, furless and two-legged, but these particular humans seemed to be nice people. He thought that perhaps they would like a little ride… but this time, not on Shaoran or Rocket.

"Hey, humans," he spoke, "do you like flying?"


	7. Chaotic Flight

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 7- Chaotic flight

"KAZEHANA! PUT ME DOWN!"

Kazehana smirked when the red-furred human's screams reached his ears; really, he wasn't used to flying at such great heights. Kaz gripped fearfully to the winged Chezamon's feathers, fearing to slip off and fall into the forest below them. He had always had Acrophobia, but he didn't even remember why in the first place. All he knew was that he was having roasted Chezamon for dinner!

Kazehana, meanwhile, felt great amounts of fear emanating from Kaz. Really, he was less daring than the rest of the human Pack. Tom and Sarah had enjoyed every second; they had even extended their arms in the air, not minding to get a hold of his feathers. Peyton had been very uneasy at first, but eventually, he had come to love the sky as well. Kazdan, however, had insisted on taking his turn before Luna, in case it was 'too dangerous' for her. Apparently, Kaz was starting to regret it.

Far below them, Tom, Luna, Kaz and Peyton were siting at the edge of the mountain cliff, attempting to spot Kazehana and Kaz, but Kazehana's silver feathers were a great camouflage- especially in cloudy days like this- and they were having a hard time finding the Chezamon. Rocket and Shaoran were resting a few steps away from them, trying to spot Kazehana as well. However, due to their more developed vision, they had no problem at all.

"Man, I wonder how Kazzy is doing up there," Peyton snickered as he took a bar of chocolate from his pocket and gave it a bite.

"What do you think? He is at least 100 meters above us; he must be terrified! Besides, remember he doesn't like heights!" Luna replied, rolling her eyes.

Sarah smirked, "Too bad my turn is over,"

"At least we have a scan of Kazehana," Tom commented, "I can't wait to ride the skies just like him!"

"I wonder what kind of attacks he uses,"

Peyton was startled when he felt hot air on the back of his neck, and he twirled around to see Rocket's face uncomfortably too close to him.

"uh, Rockie… No offense, but your breath is melting my chocolate,"

Rocket perked his ears up in curiosity, "Chocotate?"

"ChocoLate!" Tom corrected

Luna turned to look at the blue-furred beast, "don't you know what chocolate is?"

"Luna, if we DID know what chocolate is, we wouldn't be asking," Shaoran rolled his eyes; apparently humans had not a sharp intuition.

"Chocolate is the sweetest, coolest, most delicious candy ever made in the history of sweets!" Peyton proclaimed, his voice obviously filled with pride, "here, try some,"

Rocket stepped back when Peyton cut a piece from his chocolate and extended it to him. He sniffed the food curiously before taking it into his mouth... and swallowed. Suddenly, everything about him became a blur, and Rocket felt as if he had tasted Paradise itself. A smile drew on his face as his pupils dilated and his ears drooped. He didn't notice Peyton trying to make him react.

"Hello? Anyone in there? Rockie?"

"It seems that he entered some sort of trance," Shaoran pointed out as he passed his paws in front of his fellow Hunter's eyes swiftly, with no response.

"Well, Chocolate kills dogs in Earth," Tom commented before Sarah covered his mouth in horror

Shaoran's eyes went open wide, "WHAT? YOU POISONED HIM?"

"No, no, no! I mean, you are not dogs, so I don't think chocolate can kill you!"

"But it sure can drug you like my uncle Mario when he overdrinks," Peyton commented as he started pecking Rocket's nose, again with no response.

A loud cry called everyone's attention as Kazehana started to descend from the sky and landed on the cliff, a few steps away from Tom and his friends. Kaz was completely frozen in terror, his fingers dug into Kazehana's feathers and a terrified look on his face. After a while, he rolled off

Kazehana's back into the cold rock floor, met by a sharp pain in his back, which immediately brought him back from his frozen state.

"OUCH!" Kaz yelped as he sat down and rubbed his back, "thanks for crouching, Kazehana!"

"Sorry, but I didn't expect you just to paralyze like that,"

Luna walked closer, "it's my turn!

"Oh, no! It's too dangerous up there!" Kaz almost immediately stood up, "I don't think you should go up there, and less with HIM!"

"Don't be like that, he went easy on you!" Rocket added

"EASY ON ME? How can you say that when he almost made me fall twice?"

"At least he didn't make his acrobatics with you on his back," Shaoran muttered under his breath, "THAT would have been funny to watch,"

Kazehana pretended that Kaz's comment had offended him, "oh, come on! I'd never terrify your little sister like I terrified you! She's a pup!"

Luna ignored her brother's warning and climbed into Kazehana's back – in her case, Kazehana _had_ to crouch, since she was too short to climb into his back while on his feet – and gripped on his feathers, getting ready for what was to come. Kazehana turned back to see if she was comfortable.

"Are you ready for this?"

Luna grinned, "You can bet,"

"Hold on tight! I can get a little rough without noticing!"

Out of sudden, Kazehana dashed towards the sky, almost making the four grounded humans fall backwards due to the breeze of his wings, Shaoran had to stand behind Kaz since he had the feeling that scrawny human would get blown by the wind. Indeed, Kaz almost went flying backwards and Shaoran's large body prevented him from falling. After recovering from the blow, Kaz looked up to see Kazehana just as a tiny spot, high above them.

Meanwhile, Luna was absolutely sure this was the best moment of her life. After watching so many movies about people who flew on dragons, brooms and other things, she finally knew how it felt. The wind in her face, the landscapes that lied far below, the absolute feeling of freedom… she wished she could grow wings, like Kazehana, to soar above everyone, everything else, even above the clouds. Kazehana felt excitement and joy emanating strongly in her aura, as if she was the one flying and not him. He had not expected this reaction from her, at all; he had half-expected her to be screaming in terror, but she was laughing instead. He decided that this human was either very courageous, or she simply didn't mind about the height.

Luna looked down from Kazehana's back, and could see all of Mist Forest- and perhaps the entire Forest of Life, or maybe even all of Perim if they were higher- far, far below them; even the silver Cliffs looked tiny. Out of nowhere, a feeling of adrenaline rushed through her veins, and her mind closed to the voice of reason. Without thinking it twice… Luna jumped from Kazehana's back into the forest below. She didn't care if she crashed into a rock or something; a smile drew on her face as laughs came from her mouth.

Kazehana was alarmed when he no longer felt Luna's weight on his back, and when he turned, his confusion turned into horror as he no longer saw Luna on his back. He looked down frantically, and saw Luna falling down into the abyss.

"LUNA!" he cried in horror as he dived right after her, wrapping his wings around his body to go faster., fearing for the human's life.

Luna closed her eyes, feeling the wind in her face, she felt like an eagle diving down to snatch up her prey… but soon she felt more like the prey than the eagle. Kazehana dived below her and she landed right on his back, then the Sky Guard extended his wings and the force of the air lifted him once again. One sure the human was safe, Kazehana turned to look at her in shock.

"Luna, are you alright? What in the name of the Pack were you thinking?"

Luna came back from her trance, and found Kazehana's toxic green eyes staring sternly into her amber eyes. She gulped nervously, not knowing what to say, "I don't… know. Suddenly, I lost all touch with reality and I felt like I wanted… to fly,"

"Anyway, I'd better take you town," the winged Chezamon looked up," _I hope no one saw that_,"

Kazehana swooped down to meet with the rest of the humans, but as soon as he put a paw on the cliffs, Kaz ran next to him and started questioning Luna.

"LUNA, WHAT WAS THAT? WHY DID YOU DO THAT? YOU COULD HAVE DIED! I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE LET YOU GO UP THERE IN THER FIRST PLACE-!"

Before Kaz could continue with his hysteria, however, Shaoran quietly but clearly annoyed walked next to the human and picked him up by the collar of his shirt before taking him away.

"Shaoran, what are you doing? Put me down!" Kaz was crying out, but it fell on deaf ears.

Peyton scratched his head, "What's Shaory doing?"

"When he's assigned to look after the pups, he separates bickering pups like that, " Rocket explained, amused at Kaz's attempts to get free of Shaoran's fangs.

"Oh, no! I just remembered I have a match against Stinger right now!" Sarah suddenly jerked out and smacked her forehead.

"Who's stinger?" Kazehana inquired as he rested to let Luna climb off his back-

"A Danian player in Chaotic,"

"What's Chaotic?"

"Kaze, we'd gladly explain you what Chaotic is, but it would take hours," Tom replied while taking out his scanner, "see you later, then,"

Kazehana was baffled when the pack of humans –Kaz included, much to Shaoran's dismay- suddenly disappeared in what seemed to be some kind of energy.

"What… was… that…?" the winged-Chezamon asked out loud quietly as he stared the spots the humans were standing a few seconds ago

"Those humans can disappear by using their devices… I mean, Scanners," Rocket corrected himself, blushing slightly.

"You know, I think we should tell Hukaro about that detail," Shaoran suggested, just to receive a growl in reply

"Are you nuts? If Hukaro finds out we're friends with them, let alone we brought them here, he'll have our heads!

"Don't remind me!"

Kazehana shook his head in annoyance and headed for the cave he had chosen as his nest; after all, carrying five humans on your back was very tiring. Meanwhile, Rocket looked down form the cliff, and quickly realized something.

"Hey, Shaoran… how are we going down?"

XOXOXOXO

Tom, Kaz, Peyton and Luna sat in their usual table, watching as Sarah and Stinger were choosing the Creatures they would use in the match.

"Do you think Sarah will use Kazehana in this match?" Tom inquired

Kaz nodded, "Stinger might use Vollash, so I think she should be wary and put Kazehana in her deck,"

"Guys, I think we shouldn't use the Chezamon scans so often," Luna spoke, "The rest of the players might try to go to Mist Forest to try and scan Chezamon for themselves,"

"I'm with Luna on that one, dude," Peyton added, taking a sip from his soda.

Meanwhile, Sarah was as the others expected: she was wondering if she should use Kazehana in her deck.

"_If I use Kazehana, the rest of the players will come after me, begging me to trade Kazehana,_" Sarah thought, doubtful, "_But I have the feeling Stinger might use Vollash, I can't beat that flying Mandiblor with a ground Danian. Besides, as everyone says, you have to fight flight with flight_,"

Sarah smirked as she put Kazehana's scan on her deck, right next to Wamma. Suddenly, the voice of the Codemaster spoke up.

"Players, lock your decks,"

Stinger and Sarah locked their decks, and their Creatures were revealed to the other:

Chaotikween.

Front row:

Jerome, Wamma, Faash.

Middle row:

Kazehana, Skartalas

Rear Row:

Lore

Stinger

Front row:

Ekuud, Odu-Bathax, Junda

Middle row:

Vollash, Mallash

Rear row:

As Sarah expected, Stinger would use his Vollash, although the player seemed to notice her new scan.

"hey, I've never seen one of those… I'm surprised you finally get a non-Danian scan,"

Sarah huffed, offended, "it' Kazehana, that's all I will tell you,"

"Whatever, or whoever, he is, he'll turn into a roasted chicken after I'm done!"

Stinger spun the location randomizer, and after a few seconds, it stopped on a location which was very familiar to both Danian players.

"the first location: Oipoint's lookout,"

Stinger thought for a moment, thinking if he should attack Chaotikween's new Creature; after all, it seemed to be very strong if it was the first time he ever saw someone had managed to scan it. What was it's name again?... it seemed to be a flying Creature, so he decided to do it the old way…

"Vollash attacks Kazehana!"


	8. Legends of Perim

Legend of the Chezamon

**ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm now doing this story with collaboration from a friend in deviantart, his new account is Photocorn. He's going to help me with the plot, and gave me permission to use his OC Skyfall. And I haven't updated because lack of ideas, but I'll try to update as much as I can. **

**Skyfall belongs to Photocorn**

**Luna, Kaya and the Chezamon belong to me.**

**And now, to the chapter.**

Chapter 8- Legends of Perim

Sarah –as Kazehana- looked around Oipoint's lookout, searching for the winged Danian. However, there was no sign of him; out of sudden, it seemed as if she had never been there before. Sarah knew it was because Kazehana had NEVER put a paw out of Mist Forest's territory, as he put it. Because of that, she- no, HE- was not familiarized with the Danians' homeland. But what Kazehana DID have was a strong smelling sense and sensible ears. Sarah landed on one of the many platforms and closed her eyes, moving her ears forward.

Silence… no, a faint sound coming from above… it sounded like insect wings…

Sarah jumped off the platform just as Stinger- as Vollash- launched a Spirit Gust against her. She extended her feathered wings, and soared back into the heights, just where Stinger was hovering a few meters away from her.

"Not bad, for a feathered dog," he grinned, staring at the spot where his Attack had landed.

"Just wait until I finish you off, you're going to swallow those words," Sarah growled, baring her fangs.

"Swallow THIS!"

A Stingblade appeared on Stinger's hand and he started shooting at Sarah; however, Kazehana was very fast, and the flying Danian had trouble aiming at him. Sarah suddenly twirled around and started shooting what seemed to be compressed-air bullets at Stinger; they all hit their target and Stinger was sent flying against another platform. Suddenly, Sarah started hearing the same voice from before in the back of her head; the Prey Drive.

_This is it. Dig your claws into his flesh and slash his throat._

Out of sudden, Sarah lost control of what she was doing; the Prey Drive started taking over her; actually, it was Kazehana who was apparently taking over. She landed right on top of Vollash and pressed Kazehana´s large paws on his throat, her pupils gone to slits, and loud growls emanating from her throat. Stinger looked at the Winged Chezamon's slit green eyes, frozen in absolute terror; if this was not a battledrome match, if this was in real life, he would surely die.

Sarah was no longer in control, she felt as Kazehana started moving his neck backwards, preparing to strike mortally at Vollash, his fangs bared and ready. The Danian player could clearly see terror in Vollash's blue eyes, true terror, like a reindeer who is about to be killed by a wolf.

_Strike_

"No…" Sarah managed to snarl softly, managing to take control back for a little while

_He is PREY._

"Stop!"

_Prey is meant to be devoured_

"I'm not an animal!"

Sarah finally managed to regain enough control over her actions to stop herself from killing Vollash- which Stinger to ok to his advantage by firing the Stingblade right in Sarah's belly. Sarah growled in pain and jumped into the air, receiving more shots in the process.

"_Damn, I can't hurt Stinger like that, but the Prey Drive is too strong…_" she thought. How would she fight without losing control?

Meanwhile, in the Port court, Tom and the others were watching Sarah's match anxiously. It had appeared as if she had been possessed or something.

"What was that?" Tom barely spoke

Kaz gulped, "That Prey Drive Kaya was talking about seems to be really strong,"

Tom thought for a moment, "It's understandable, Chezamon are… sorry, guys… more animals than anything, from what I've seen. I mean, they are intelligent and all that, but that doesn't stop them from acting like animals at all…"

Luna frowned and hissed, "Don't say that! Animals don't reason! I like animals from Earth, but… " She looked at the table, "Kaya and the others are like people… like all the other Tribes,"

"Except the Chezamon are a bit reclusive and don't want the other Tribes to know about them," Kaz muttered, to which Peyton let out a grin.

"I got an idea!" he started, and judging by the look of his face, he was eager, "how about we ask our pals from the Tribes if they know of the Chezamon?"

Before he had finished the last word, Kaz, Tom and Luna were already yelling.

"Are you nuts?!"

"What if they suspect we know something?!"

"You heard Kaya! If we tell the other Tribes, they'll be in trouble!"

Peyton lifted his arms to motion his friends to calm down, "Hey, hey! I don't mean we ask directly; just ask them if they know something about a sixth Tribe!

Luna thought, "If they suspect, we could tell them it's curiosity?"

"You got it!"

Tom thought, "I had been thinking about mentioning it to Maxxor…"

Luna gave him a small glare, "You're going to tell him, aren't you?"

"Hey, It's Maxxor we're talking about! I'm sure he won't try to attack! He'll try to make peace!"

"But the Chezamon don't want to make peace with anyone! They don't even want them knowing they exist!"

Peyton interfered, "Perhaps Tommy is right, the other Tribes will eventually find them soon or later. Besides, the M'arrillian may re-attack any moment, and perhaps they do know about the Chezamon."

Kaz rolled his eyes, "What do you suggest? To tell Kaya, 'hey, could you take us to see the leaders of your Tribe? We'd like to talk to them about making peace with the other Tribes to fight another Tribe that wants to conquer all of Perim!"

"I was going to suggest we 'slip' the information to our contacts, but your idea is much better!"

Upon hearing Kaz, Kaz smashed his head against the table.

"Me and my big mouth…" he muttered

"Alright then," Tom clapped his hands, "we ask Kaya and the others to take us to the Alphas to explain to them the situation."

"But what makes you think they will let us see their Alphas so easily?"

"Well, you saw how Kaya, Rocket and the other Chezamon reacted when we mentioned them about the other Tribes. I bet their leaders would be interested,"

Peyton joined, "And if they agree with us, they'll allow the rest of the Tribes to send peace treaties!"

Out of sudden, Luna abruptly stood up, "Oh, darn! I forgot I have a match today!"

Kaz raised an eyebrow, "against who?"

Luna thought for a moment, "err... Skyfall!"

Peyton inquired, "the dude who uses both Danians and Mipedians?"

"Yep! And it starts in five minutes! See you later! And tell me if Sarah won the match!"

After saying this, Luna ran way as fast as she could to the Hottek Drome.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The player named Skyfall was getting impatient. Unlike most players, he was a man in about his middle thirties. He had short gray hair, and his clothing consisted of a simply light grey suit and a tie. His pants were of the same tone, and he wore black shoes. After a few more minutes, his opponent finally arrived; a young girl of about 8 years old. She panted heavily and put her scanner in place

"Sorry for the delay," she apologized while wiping sweat off her face.

"It' s alright, just try not to be so distracted the next time," Skyfall simply said as he put his scanner in place as well, and the screens appeared in front of them.

Luna didn't doubt in putting both Kaya and Kazehana in her deck, along with some of her favorite Mipedians scans. She eyed her opponent briefly; he didn't seem to be nervous or anything, his face was serene as he picked his Creatures. After a while, the familiar voice of the drome spoke.

**Players, lock your decks**

When they examined each other's decks, Luna noticed Skyfall would use both Danian and Mipedian Creatures.

Lizarduna

Front row: Ario, Prince Mudeenu, Kaya

Middle row: Siado, Kazehana

Rear Row: Dakkamal, Uro

Skyfall

Front row: Faash, Danian Guard, Crown Prince Iflar

Middle row: Kolmo, Bylkian

Rear row: Wamma, Apppelai

Skyfall noticed the two Chezamon on Luna's deck, and couldn't help but ask, "excuse me, but I've never seen those two Creatures,"

Luna gulped, "err… they are new scans…" she noticed the Danian Guard scan, "I didn't know those could be scanned,"

Skyfall shrugged, "He's an old friend of mine,"

Luna activated the location randomizer.

Mist Lake.

"_I guess I'll save Kaya for last, I think Kazehana would be more useful due to the clouds. The Danian Guard is not very strong, I will start with his strongest creatures,"_ She thought, "Kazehana attacks Kolmo!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Fifteen Minutes later…

Tom was already known to be a personal friend of Maxxor, so he didn't have much difficulty into seeing him. Maxxor didn't have much to do, anyway, it seemed… When he entered the Overworld leader's office, Maxxor was checking some maps; Bodhal's visit had made him reconsider into sending explorers. But first he wanted to make sure there was no danger… he noticed Tom entering his office.

"Hey, Maxxor,"

"Tom, I was about to ask Intress to search for you,"

This surprised the Chaotic player, "really? Why?"

"I wanted to ask you a favor," Maxxor explained, "Do you know of the unexplored areas in the Forest of Life?"

Tom gulped, "well, that's what I wanted to talk you about."

"What do you want to know?"

"See… in Chaotic there've been rumors of strange Creatures lurking in there…"

This caught Maxxor's attention. Humans were aware of what was happening in there?

That was another reason of why Tom was the one capable of this task.

Tom continued, "Do you know anything about them? You know, a history or something…?"

Maxxor thought for a moment, "… There's an old story that dates back to the first wars between the four Tribes,"

"I listen,"

"It is said that there was a sixth Tribe of Creatures, but no one recalls their name. They inhabited what is now Broken Edge; that place used to be a small forest, but in one of the fights with the Underworld, it caught fire, and after that, the Sixth Tribe was never heard from again. It is said that their spirits roam Broken Edge at times of war, mourning the loss of their home," Maxxor looked down in shame, "It's such a pity. If they existed at all, they would have been potential allies for the Overworld,"

Tom hoped that he was not making a mistake, "Maxxor… I have to tell you something about the… Sixth Tribe…"

Maxxor agitated when he heard the word Sixth Tribe escape Tom's lips, "Do you have any information about that?"

"… I… I met them,"

"I KNEW IT!" Out of sudden, Bodhal rushed through the door, being followed by Intress, "I knew It was not just a rumor!"

Intress gave Maxxor an apologetic look, "I'm sorry, Maxxor. I told him you were busy, but he didn't listen…."

"Tell them, Tom!" Bodhal cornered on the Overworld player, "Tell them there are Creatures in the Forest of Life!"

"… Actually, it's Mist forest where they live."

"Mist Forest?" Intress spoke, "That place is only a legend,"

"No, it isn't! I've been there with my friends! In fact, I have a scan!"

Tom searched through his scanner for the Location and when he did find it, he showed it to both Maxxor and Intress.

"Impossible…"

Maxxor was amazed, "You say you have met the Creatures?"

"Yes! They are the Chezamon! They live there, but they didn't want me to tell you anything!"

Maxxor and Intress remained silent, but Bodhal started questioning Tom.

"Did you see any Roth shards when you were there?! It's important!"

Maxxor nodded to Intress, and she took Bodhal away, despite his protests. Maxxor and Tom were completely alone again.

"They asked you to keep them a secret, then?"

Tom nodded, "They are afraid that you'll attempt to attack them, or worse,"

Maxxor thought for a moment… so Tom had already met the… Chezamon, he called them. He was already thinking or a peace treaty, but judging by what Tom was saying, the Chezamon were very reclusive and didn't trust outsiders. They reminded him a little of the Danians and the Mipedians a little. These two Tribes were not as reclusive, but they didn't trust those who are not one of them. Perhaps Tom could talk some sense into the Chezamon.

"… Tom, about the favor I wanted to ask you… Could you try to talk to them?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"WHAT-?!"

"Wamma, be quiet!" Sarah hissed, trying to make sure there were no Mandiblors around. They were in Wamma's chambers… well, actually it was not only his, he shared room with Aimukk, Bierk and Faash. However, only Wamma and Faash were there… Aimukk and Bierk were doing their rounds. Faash paid her no mind, however; he was having a strong headache and he was not in the mood to listen to a human. But he was began to show interest when Sarah mentioned Mist Forest… that name sounded familiar to him, but he couldn't remember.

"You're saying that there's been another Tribe all this time?! Why didn't we know about it!"

Sarah scoffed, "One, you guys live in the Underworld, which is hundreds of kilometers beneath the Overworld, where this Tribe lives. Two, you guys have never bothered in talking about this with the other three Tribes. And three, the Chezamon are just like you guys!"

Faash raised an eyebrow while rubbing his temples, "they are?"

Sarah nodded; she was more friends with Wamma, but she had gotten to like his roommates. She didn't see Faash that much, but Aimukk and Bierk had become quite fond of her as well.

"They are secretive and don't like outsiders!"

"… I think we would be good friends,"

"So, how do they look?" Wamma's curiosity was getting the better of him, "are they big? Red? Furry?"

"What a coincidence! That matches Kaya perfectly!" Sarah chuckled, "and I have a scan of Jerome!"

Before Wamma could ask who Jerome was, Sarah showed him her scan of the Chezamon. Wamma inspected it carefully.

"Hey, he looks like an overgrown dog!"

Finally, it snapped in Faash's memory; all the talk about Chezamon reminded him of the legend he had heard as a hatchling. He closed his eyes shut, attempting to calm his headache to clear his mind.

"Faashy, are you all right?" he heard Wamma ask, and was mildly irritated when Sarah giggled. The last thing he needed was her knowing his nickname.

"Yeah… I just remembered something…" the Elementalist replied, "remember that old tale Lore used to tell us when we were hatchlings?"

"You mean the old story about Beasts?"

Sarah felt a spark of curiosity in the back of her head "Wouldn't you mind telling me about it?"

Faash decided to comply so that they would leave him alone, "alright… let me remember a bit… It is said that there was a small forest in the Overworld where a Tribe of wild dogs lives. The forest itself was a Paradise, with lush trees and crystalline water. But War soon arrived to the forest, and the wild dogs decided not to get involved; unfortunately, the other the other Tribes' battles expanded on the forest, and in one of those fights the entire forest was set ablaze. Only a few wild dogs escaped the massacre. Homeless, they wandered through Perim for years, looking for a new homeland. Finally, tired and desperate, they decided they wanted to leave the realm of the living and decided to go to the unexplored areas of Perim, in hopes that they would be killed by something. They went into the Forest of Life, and were never heard from again. However, the forest became haunted, as some say, and whoever puts a foot in the unexplored regions has his soul stolen, never to be seen again…"

Faash noticed Sarah was munching what seemed to be some kind of candy, and Wamma's appetite had risen gain; the overweight Mandiblor was having some of that candy as well.

"What are you two eating?" he sighed irritably

"Chocolate," Sarah offered him her bar, "want some?"

Faash hesitated for a few seconds before taking a piece of that dark brown candy and tasting it with his tongue; it tasted sweet. He took the entire chocolate to his mouth, and an explosion of sweetness took place in his mouth. He couldn't contain a small smile.

"Not bad."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Siado looked around, making sure there was no one around. He didn't want unwanted attention, or anyone overhearing what he and Peyton were talking about; most Mipedians could not keep secrets among themselves. If they heard at least one rumor, it took only a few fours for all of Al Mipedim to find out. And in these circumstances, that would be very bad. Unlike the other Tribes, however, the Mipedians were actually very interested in the supposed Sixth Tribe.

"So they actually exist." The lizard muttered, "But why can't we tell Prince Mudeenu about this?"

"Because if we do, not only will he probably keep me as an informant about the Chezamon, but Kaya is going to hate me!" Peyton replied, not wanting to imagine it.

"You realize that this could be a chance for the Mipedians to get new allies, don't you?"

"If they _want_ to make allies with anyone. You don't know this, but they're not exactly… friendly."

"Then what do you suggest?"

Peyton thought for a moment, "At least I could try to convince them to give Mipedians a chance, but I'm not sure… What if the other Tribes find out? It will be a four-way war to get the Chezamon as allies, and that's the main reason they decided to go into hiding in the first place."

"Oh, really?"

Both Peyton and Siado were startled by the new voice, and started looking around frenetically. However, Siado recognized the voice and managed to spot his invisible fellow.

"Hello, Vinta," he growled,

Said Mipedian revealed himself, and there was a certain degree of curiosity on his face, "So… you say we can't tell _anybody_ about this?"

"Not unless you want to lose both potential allies and me! Speaking of which, why are you guys so interested in the Chezamon? I mean, the other Tribes are too, but not so much as you."

Siado and Vinta gave each other a quick glance before setting their slit pupils back on their human friend.

"… It's a long story…" Siado spoke, "The Sixth Tribe were born from the sands of the desert and lighting themselves, for their fur was as dark as storm clouds and they were as fast as lighting, perhaps even faster. However, they distrusted and loathed those who were not from their Tribe, and because of this, they left when the fires of war destroyed the forest they once called home, and turned their backs on all the other Tribes when the M'arrillians first attacked. Because of this, our ancestors cursed them; they would not be seen or heard from for the rest of their existence, unless they were desperately needed."

"Wow…" Peyton was awestruck, "So that means that their distrust of everyone is because they were cursed? Wait until they hear it!"

"Hey, Peyton, can't you at least show us where the Mist Forest is?" Vinta inquired, "I mean, perhaps if we explain to them that we're acquaintances of yours they will not be as hostile."

"If they learn that, they'll kill me!"

"Any better ideas?"

Siado thought for a moment. Peyton said they couldn't tell anyone about the Chezamon… but what if he spoke to the Chezamon about them? Perhaps the Chezamon would be tempted to make a peace treaty with the Mipedians if they learned of their invisibility and abilities. The most important thing; persuade them before the other Tribes could.

"Hey, Peyton… Remember what I taught you about persuasion?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Kaz, I order you take me to that forest!"

"Chaor, for the fifth time, I can't simply walk in and say 'Hey, guys! I brought the Underworld leader despite you told me not to tell anyone because he wants to make a peace treaty! They'll probably move away again!"

Kaz had been explaining it to Chaor the reason why he couldn't show him the location of the forest, but the Underworld ruler was very stubborn.

Chaor growled, "If you don't tell me, I'll speak with Luna, then!"

"No! If she learns I told you, she'll kill me!"

Takinom intervened, "Chaor, what is he's right? What if the Chezamon go into hiding once they learn he has told us about them?"

"If we want to take out the Overworld, it's a risk I must take! The legends say these Creatures are the strongest warriors that ever existed! If we can make them our allies, all of Perim will be ours!"

Kaz smacked his forehead, "You don't get it, do you? The Chezamon don't want to go into war with the rest of Perim. That's why they didn't want me to tell anyone!"

Chaor thought for a moment. Perhaps Kaz was right, and he would need to be a little more cautious. The Chezamon had been living away from the war for a long time, solems if his calculations were right. True. Any attempts to speak personally with them would probably scare them away; in fact, according to Kaz they were quite secretive, and did not tolerate intruders. Kaz had said that when Luna first encountered Kaya, the latter had almost attacked her, but he did not because she was a child, according to him. What he needed was someone who they already trust, to persuade them that the Underworld was worthy of their alliance. Someone…

Perhaps Kaz could to the job…


	9. The Capture

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 9- The Capture

Luna tried to figure out Skyfall's next move. Most of her Creatures had been beaten, save for Kaya and Kazehana. Luckily, she had already beaten almost of Skyfall's Creatures, but he only had his Danian Guard left. She had never thought those could be so strong, however. When she had fought against him, she had lost, but she had not used Kaya or Kazehana when facing the Danian Guard, so perhaps she would defeat him this time.

"Impressive," said Skyfall, taking a look at Kaya, "It doesn't even have a scratch. Are you sure you are not interested in trading, my dear?"

Luna snapped, "Pretty sure."

Skyfall accepted the answer, "Very well, then. Danian Guard attacks Kaya."

As both players touched their respective cards and turned into the Creatures Luna hoped the Prey Drive would not attempt to take over again.

"Let's get this over with!" she spoke with Kaya's voice, and the two players were sent into the random location.

Mist Forest.

XOXOXOXO

Tom and the others made their way trough the bushes and the low branches of the trees, going to the spot they had encountered Kaya and Rocket the last time. They had reencountered in the port court, and then they revealed what they had done. They had spoken to their contacts in the Tribes about the Chezamon, but the Creatures had promised not to give away the information. They all had the same task; convince the Chezamon to make allies with their respective favorite Tribe.

And that would be a problem.

"What are we going to do now?" Tom spoke irritably after having a branch smack his nose for about the fifth time, "We can't tell them to make a peace treaty with _all_ the Tribes."

"Remember, we'll just try to talk to their leaders, and convince them to give the Tribes a chance to prove they have changed…" Kaz thought for a minute, "… a bit."

"If they listen at all. I mean, why would they listen to what four single humans have to say?" Sarah spoke while shaking the mud off her shoes.

Peyton grinned, "Come on, dudes! They can't be that bad! Maybe they'll be interested if we tell them a bit about the other Tribes! They may even send ambassadors or something!"

Sarah rolled her eyes, "Didn't you just listen? How can you be sure they'll listen to us?"

"It's worth a try." Tom spoke, making his way through the forest.

Kaz heard something behind him; he turned around, but saw nothing but bushes. However, felt a shiver through his spine. Was it perhaps Kaya…?

No. Kaya and the others already knew them, and had no reason to sneak up on them.

He heard the same sound, this time on the right. There were nothing but bushes at the side, but the sound was coming from there. Growling, it seemed.

"Guys, I'm hearing something," Kaz spoke, getting closer to the bushes to investigate.

"You didn't hear anything, it's you imagination." Sarah replied, "And if you did, perhaps it's just a squirrel."

"No, really, I heard something-"

Before they could react, suddenly a whip-like object whipped through the air and struck Tom, who fell to the ground with a loud thud. However, before Sarah, Kaz and Peyton could do anything, they were struck with the same whip-like tongue. They fell to the ground, unable to move; as if all of their body had been rendered useless. They could only move their eyes to see what was going on.

"What… happened…?" Tom growled

"I… Can't… move…" Kaz followed

"My… back… itches… can't… reach…!" Peyton whimpering, feeling the itching get worse by the second.

"Seriously… Peyton…" Sarah rolled her eyes

Their terror began when they saw Creatures coming closer to them… about 6 or 7 of them… most of them looked like Sorka, but their tones of gray were quite different.

"What do we have here?" one of them asked rhetorically, snapping his fangs.

"I told you humans were stupid," another inquired, "They always go back through the same places."

"What do we do with them?"

A third member of the pack gave the first one that spoke a sarcastical look, "What else? Offer them cookies and tea?"

"That… would be nice…" Peyton pointed out, but when the Chezamon gave him a growl, he remained silent.

"We're going to Convert them!"

Convert? What did that mean? Judging by his tone of voice, it couldn't be nice.

"Enough!" a female voice boomed through the forest, and the Chezamon Hunters remained silent when their lieutenant arrived.

It was a female Chezamon, the first they had seen, but there was something… odd about her. Her eyes had no pupils, and she had what seemed to be… mandibles? Her fur was of a rusty red, almost like Shaoran's, and she had no color in her underbelly. She had golden markings all around her body, and her tail was a little shorter than the male Hunters'.

"Syena, we found these intruders roaming around here," another Hunter spoke outloud, "What shall we do with them, ma'am?"

Syena examined the paralyzed humans carefully, and decided what to do. She spoke in a tone that demanded obedience.

"We shall take them to the Den to be interrogated, and then the Alphas will decide if they'll be Converted… or killed."

The Hunters nodded and, before Tom knew it, he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head, and soon he was lost to unconsciousness.

…..

When he regained his senses, he realized he was no longer in Mist Forest, but in a cave… and if Chezamon were like wolves, he could guess it was an underground cavern. His sight got used to the dim light of a torch outside their cell –it had to be a cell, judging by the wooden bars on the entrance- and noticed his friends were on the same situation as him; they were waking up.

"Where…" Kaz rubbed his eyes, and took his hand to his pants to search for his scanner… "My scanner is missing!"

The others started scanning their pockets as well, but they had the same result.

"Mine too!"

"I can't believe it! What are we going to do now?!"

"Looks like they don't want us to leave at all!"

A new voice joined them, "You got that right."

The four teens turned towards the door of their cell and spotted two gray Chezamon staring at them indifferently.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sarah inquired, not liking the Hunters' tone in the least.

"It means that none of you will _ever_ leave here." The Hunter form the right sneered, "We're not sure what to do with you yet. We might make you servants, Hunters, like us, or perhaps Healers…"

"Guys, hate to break it to you, but we're human." Kaz rolled his eyes, "It's not like we can simply join your pack or something like that."

The other Hunter let out a laugh, "Don't be so sure; right now, our Beta Male is deciding if he'll Convert you or not."

Driven by curiosity, Peyton asked, "What does 'Convert' mean, dudes?"

The Hunters gave each other a glance before smirking, "You'll find out soon enough," the first Hunter that had spoken said, "But you can be sure that you will never see the light of day again… and if you do, it will be through a different perspective."

The Hunters snickered before walking away, sending shivers through the humans' spine.

"What will they mean with 'another perspective'?" Peyton pointed out while looking at where the Hunters had just stood a few seconds ago.

"Whatever it is, it can't be good." Kaz trembled as he thought what the Chezamon were planning to do with them.

Whatever Conversion meant, it surely didn't sound pleasing in the least. If Assimilation was a bad thing, Conversion… couldn't be any much better, whatever it was.

But why was the meaning of that word being hidden from them?

XOXOXOXOXO

A few chambers above them there was, indeed, a meeting taking place. The chamber was an underground cavern, illuminated with firefly-filled lanterns on the roof, but it was complete dug out of the earth, with no stalactites or stalagmites, or a single rock was seen. The only rock in that chamber was a long table made out of white stone- there were a few roots hanging from the roof, belonging to the trees that were above the chamber. Along the table were seated various Chezamon, all varying in color, but all of them looked almost the same in shape, except for the two Chezamon at the end of the table.

One of those was a large, black-furred Chezamon with fringes of silver on his folded, feathered wings, and the hair on the end of his long, more dragon-like tail. His ears were pointy, and the tips were of a dark gray color. He had a white underbelly and jaw, and his paws were of a bluish gray color. His face emanated authority and strength, yet he never lost his calm tone, not even for some humans.

In other words, he was like a black-furred, slightly more elegant-looking version of Kazehana.

The Chezamon next to him was obviously a female; she had his same shape, but she was much smaller and her body had more curves. Her fur was fiery red, like Kaya's, and she had white legs and face. She had feathered wings as well, but she had them wrapped around her body, as if trying to hide her body from the other present Chezamon, showing their orange and gold color. She had dark red markings on her face and legs, and her tail had dark red fringes.

One of the Chezamon on the left side of the table was a little bulky, with well-proportioned legs and shiny fur. His fur was a reddish brown, and his had a light yellow face underbelly, legs and face; his paws were a dark brown, and on his face he had an even lighter brown marking, starting on his golden eyes and running down his snout, and ending in his nose. Curiously, it had almost the shape of a 'W'. The end of his bushy tail was of a dark brown.

Another Chezamon, who was precisely on the opposite side of the table, had a contrasting dark gray fur, with silver underbelly and jaws; he had a black back, forehead, and the black fur merged with his silver underside right on his neck and near his shoulders. His front paws were black with silver fingers, giving them a glove-like appearance; his rear paws were completely black, with a silver line on surrounding them. His eyes were a crimson red.

A third Chezamon was a on the right side of the table as well, sitting in front of Syena. This one looked much older than the other two, apparently on his last years, although he still had much life inside. His fur was dark brown, his face, paws and underbelly were white, and he had what seemed to be black markings around his neck, running down his back until it shaped a 'V', and had a similar marking in the sides of his snout. Half of his more cat-like tail was black, and the rest ended in white.

"Lord Baojia, I insist these humans must be Converted immediately before they get away!" the dark gray Chezamon bowed his head respectfully at the black winged male, "We shouldn't risk them finding a way to escape and alert the rest of the Tribes of our presence here."

The reddish brown Chezamon argued back, "Converted? I don't know if you have noticed, but these humans are different from the Creatures we have converted so far! We don't know how it would change them, or if we will be able to control them at all!"

"If I wanted your opinion I would have asked for it, Hukaro!"

The Chezamon named Hukaro turned towards the old Chezamon, "Torimaku, am I right or not?"

Torimaku sighed, "On your side, I'd say that being wary is wise,"

Hukaro gave the gray male a triumphant smirk, "See? I was right as always, Ryuu."

"But… It is not a bad idea to experiment Conversion on humans."

Ryuu returned the taunting grin, "Ha."

The red-furred, winged female shook her head at the argument and gave Syena glance, "What do you think, Syena? Would these humans be useful to the Pack if they were converted? Or would it be best to execute them, as Hukaro says?

Syena thought on what she would say for a moment before bowing to the female, "Lady Dryla, if we'll convert them, I won't lie to you. Right now, they don't seem to be skilled in battle or even look like the fighter type. But in my opinion, the black-furred human seems to have potential for being a Hunter, he has courage and from what I saw, he seems to be some sort of leader; he might even become a Clawder," she gave Ryuu a small glance, ". The red-furred human is… to put it lightly, very thin and he doesn't seem very strong. He wouldn't do good in battle, I suggest placing him with the pupsitters. The brown-furred one is very large, I have a feeling he will be very strong if Converted. He would do well as a Hunter-"

"Unless he ends up like certain good-for-nothing Hunter I know," Hukaro muttered under his breath.

Syena gave Hukaro a small glare; she didn't like to be interrupted.

Ryuu inquired, "And what about the human female?"

"She is determined, if not a little hot-headed, she will do well as a Hunter as well, but I suggest she is placed as a Healer."

Hukaro spoke (this time making sure Syena was done talking), "_If _they are converted. If they are not, at least we should erase their memories so that they won't remember anything."

Dryla looked at Torimaku, "Are you done examining the humans' teleporting devices?"

Torimaku turned towards a Hunter on the entrance of the chamber and gave him a nod; the Hunter understood and walked towards the table, holding what a small brown handkerchief on his jaws. He put it on the table, revealing the group's scanners.

Torimaku explained, "I'm afraid these devices cannot be used by ourselves; me and my students have tried everything to make them work, but they just won't budge," he bowed respectfully to Baojia, "I'm afraid that only the humans are capable of using them."

Hukaro lost his patience and snatched Kaz's scanner, sniffing it and pressing random buttons, trying to see if there was a way of unlocking it.

Ryuu rolled his eyes, "Are you deaf? Torimaku just said they won't work with us!"

Hukaro narrowed his eyes, not taking his gaze off the red scanner, "What do you suggest, then? Return this to the humans so that they teach us how to use them? They'll get away as soon as we give it to them!"

"Although…" Syena thought for a moment, flicking her tail, "That would be a good idea."

"What?!" Ryuu and Hukaro snapped at the same time, giving her a confused look.

"The humans are our prisoners; if they're smart, they'll realize that they don't have any choice but do as we say. Besides, I never suggested we gave their scanners back at all, we shall ask them how to make them work."

Hukaro thought for a moment, and something else snapped, "Now that we're on it, these humans… They are not from here at all. Perhaps they've been to the other Tribes' Dens… If we could gain some information from them…"

Baojia snarled, "IF you're suggesting to attack one of the other four Tribes, you can forget about it."

Hukaro bowed his head, "No, my lord. All I mean is that we should be wary; we know nothing of the other Tribes, if we're attacked-"

Ryuu interrupted him with cough, "In case you forgot, we're hidden within the depths of the Forest of Life. Mist Forest is a myth to the rest of Perim, not to mention that all the outsiders that came here never returned to their Dens. The possibility of them knowing of our existence is very low, unless…"

Ryuu's eyes widened in realization at what Hukaro meant. The four captured humans were not the first to have come to Mist Forest; many other humans had been going into Mist Forest, but all of them had gotten away. To enworse things, the humans knew of their existence already, so they had probably already shouted it outloud in all of Perim…

Hukaro continued, "As I was saying, it would be useful if we knew of the other Tribes' weaknesses, in case they attempt to return again."

Baojia and Dryla looked at each other for a while, as if attempting to figure what the other was thinking. Finally, Baojia gave Hukaro a nod.

"Very well. You and Syena will interrogate the humans, but do NOT give them their devices back. At least, not yet. First, obtain all information you can from them."

Hukaro vowed his head respectfully, "As you wish, my lord.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Luna/Kaya looked around the misty background of Mist Forest, attempting to catch Skyfall/Danian Guard's scent, but it appeared the man had been trained in camouflaging, because she had lost his trail. He had said the Danian's name was… Kendrun. Of course even the Danian guards had names! How would they call each other if they didn't? Kaya's sensitive hearing alerted to footsteps, and he barely had time to doge a pebble stone attack. He landed in a bush, and before he knew it he was avoiding shots from the elder, more experienced player.

"Come on, doggie!" Kendrun taunted at the red Chezamon, "I don't bite… much."

Kaya retorted, offended, "Hey! I'm not a dog!"

He lunged at Kendrun, all while avoiding the Stingblade's shots., and the two went rolling down a hill (which they hadn't noticed at all due to the landscape). Despite rolling down, Kaya managed to see the edge of Mist Lake ahead. If Kendrun was good when on ground, perhaps he was not the type of Danian who knew how to swim. As they flew into the air, Kaya leapt away to the ground before Kendrun fell into the water. The red Chezamon got closer to the edge of the small cliff, staring at the water, seeing nothing but bubbles gurgling; Yep, apparently, Kendrun was not the type of Danian who could swim.

Before he could do something, Kaya was struck with a Water attack, and he was sent flying against a tree, making him whimper in pain. Suddenly, Kendrun rose from the water in a whirlpool; Kaya stared at him in astonishment.

"Seriously?!" he spoke, "What's next?! Air attacks?!"

Kendrun grinned as he landed a few meters away from Kaya, launching more water attacks at his opponent, despite the Chezamon having no trouble avoiding them.

"_Damn it, Kaya's fire attacks will be useless against water attacks_," Luna thought, "_But… fire and water together form steam. If I could make enough steam to daze him, I could get an advantage and finish him off!_"

Kaya launched an Inferno Gust to counter Kendrun's Rip Tide, and as Luna predicted, steam started to emanate from the point where the two attacks collided. The more time passed, more steam formed, until Kendrun finally could not see where Kaya had gone. He frenetically started looking around, but was unable to spot the Chezamon's red fur; the last thing he felt before being coded was something Kaya digging his fangs into his throat.

Back in the Battledrome, Luna changed back to normal; she was surprised to see Skylander was clapping his hands.

"Excellent, my dear. You have great potential to be an exceptional player. If I may ask, what Creature was that you used?"

Luna looked a the ground; despite the compliment, she couldn't bring herself to reveal the secret, "Sorry, mister Skylander, but I promised I wouldn't tell anyone about it…"

Skylander sighed in disappointment, "I understand, my dear… A promise is a promise. If you do not wish to speak, you do not need to."

He gave her a mysterious look, "After all, there are secrets that should remain secret."

"Thanks, mister Skylander! I'll call my brother and tell him about the match!" Luna grabbed her scanner and rushed back to the port court. She didn't notice the curious stare Skylander was giving her.

"… Such a high-spirited young girl… I wouldn't be surprised if she came to beat a Codemaster soon."

XOXOXOXOXO

They were in major trouble.

Kaya , Rocket, Jerome and Shaoran stared worriedly at the four humans in the middle of the interrogating chamber. When they had been told humans had been captured, they didn't imagine it was Luna's pack. Hukaro was staring sternly at the humans, who were cowering in fear. Kaz was trembling visibly, in fact, the room was emanating fear from the humans.

The interrogating room itself was big enough to hold a few of the Chezamon Nobles, who would decide the humans' fate after the questioning was done. There were a few Hunters present, them included, to prevent the humans from escaping or attempting to harm anyone, the Nobles specifically. In fact, Ryuu even had been asked to bring some of his Clawders to protect the Nobles (just in case). Ryuu himself was resting next to Jerome, staring at the humans amusingly; unlike most high-ranking Chezamon and Nobles, Ryuu had no particular objection in being close to Hunters. This chamber had no tree roots on the ceiling, however. Syena was sitting next to Hukaro, staring at the humans in a more curious way.

The room went silent when Hukaro spoke, "You know, we do not take kindly intruders who come into our territory."

Tom gathered enough courage to speak, "B-but we're not spies! We were just looking for-!"

The black-haired human froze as Hukaro snapped his teeth at him.

"Quiet!" he snarled, "I already have enough migraines around here to have intruders around!"

Syena rolled her eyes and, pushing Hukaro backwards (ticking him off), she spoke softly, "Listen, humans. We do not mean harm if you cooperate."

"C-Cooperate?" Peyton mumbled, "Girl, how can we be sure you guys won't eat us, tear us or even turn us into pupsitters?"

Hukaro and Ryuu opened their eyes slightly in surprise; how did he know about that? Secretly, Hukaro panicked that these humans could read their minds. Kaya couldn't help but let out a chuckle, but was cut short when Rocket elbowed him hard on the ribs.

Syena gave them a slight smile, "Don't worry, if you don't cause trouble…" she motioned Shaoran to get closer, and the Hunter, giving the humans a quick reassuring glance, walked next to her, holding the handkerchief in his mouth. He dropped it at her feet, and the scanners scattered at her paws, but quickly put her left paw to block it from the humans' grasp, "… We'll give you your devices back."

"Excuse me, miss," Peyton spoke, "Or missus, if you're married, but you don't look married so…" he started to tremble when he noticed Syena was narrowing her eyes, "… Anyway, those… devices are called Scanners, we need them to port back to-"

Tom, Sarah and Kaz gave him fulminating stares; he had given away their method of transport to the Chezamon; well, Kaya and the others already knew, but they hadn't told anything.

Hukaro snapped, "Ha! I knew you were spies!"

"NO!" shouted Kaz, "We're not spies! We just came to-!"

A beep startled Hukaro, making him jump a step back; most Chezamon present, including Ryuu, peered their ears to the front and started looking around for the source of the sound. The Underworld player grew nervous when he realized it was his scanner beeping.

Luna was calling him.

Syena was startled by the beeping, but she regained her cool quickly and stared down at the Scanners at her paws; the red scanner was the one beeping.

"Who is the owner of the red devi- Scanner?" the female lieutenant corrected herself

Kaz gulped as he stepped to the front –not before receiving reassuring looks from his friends- and stopped in front of Syena, staring into her slit pupils.

"M-me," he mumbled

"Why is it beeping like that?"

"I-I have a c-call. C-can I answer it?"

"Of course not!" Hukaro stepped to the front, showing his teeth, "How do we know you won't try to get away?!"

Kaz gathered enough courage to speak to Hukaro firmly, "Then could you at least let me talk to her? I'll tell you how to answer the call!"

"What are you-!"

Syena interrupted him, "Of course, young human. Tell me how to operate the Scanner, and I'll answer the call for you."

Kaz motioned at his scanner, "See the red button on the center of the cross-shaped button? Press it…"

XOXOXOXOXO

Luna sat in the group's usual table, and waited for her brother to answer the call. Really, he didn't usually take so long in answering her calls. She didn't know where they had gone, and it was annoying her. She wanted to tell him about her match as soon as possible, but there was no sign of them. Tom, Peyton and Sarah had not answered her calls either, so she was starting to worry.

Finally, Kaz seemed to pick up her call.

"Kazdan!" she spoke, "Where are you? Why don't you guys answer my-?"

Luna couldn't finish her sentence, for she realized it was not her brother on the screen, but a Chezamon. A female Chezamon, but she seemed a little… different.

"Are you… Kazdan's sister?"

Luna nodded.

Hukaro pushed Syena aside softly, taking most of the screen for himself, and took a look at Luna, "She does have some resemblance to him."

Syena pushed Hukaro aside and stared at Luna, "Dear, would you mind coming to the Den as well. We have a few questions for you and your pack. If you answer them, you may all go free."

"But I don't know where it…"

Syena spoke again, "I'll send Hunters to take you to the Den, but I'd like you to tell me where you'll… port, isn't it?"

Luna nodded again.

"I'll port to Mist Lake, but please promise me you won't hurt my friends." She spoke

Now it was Syena's turn to nod, "I give you my word. No harm will come to them."

Luna was startled when Syena finished the call abruptly, but apparently she had done it by accident. After all, she did not know how to use it. However, there was no time for that; the girl dashed towards the Port Court.

She didn't want to make the Hunters wait.


	10. The Deal

Legend of The Chezamon

Chapter 10- The Deal

**Announcement: I asked Starart132 to include my Chezamon in his story, so I might use the predators he created for Mist Forest, if he gives me permission, of course.**

Shaoran waited for Luna to arrive. She had said she would port near Mist Lake, so he headed in the direction Kaya had taken them when he had given them the said 'Mist Forest tour', as he later dubbed it.

This was the first time humans were interrogated, and the first time Hukaro didn't use one of his… 'Methods' to make them spill the beans. But after the humans claiming that if their captors attempted to kill them, their 'codes' would disappear forever, and they would never be able to return to Chaotic, let alone Perim. Kaya, upon hearing this and, not wanting to lose his new friends, immediately 'put his paws into the fire' and convinced Hukaro and Siena that it was not of their convenience to lose such valuable information.

Still, Ryuu ordered two of his Clawders to accompany Shaoran, in case Luna attempted something, despite Kaz and Kaya's insistence that she was just a 'pup', and was incapable of harming a Tortoisel.

Clawders. The elite guard of the Alphas, the strongest, most powerful warriors in the Tribe. Their fur was _completely_ jet black, with no kind of markings or spots. Pups were always born with baby bluff, which could vary in color, but the most common baby fur were brown tones, light or dark. Other, uncommon colors were greenish, grayish, bluish or purplish tones. The rarest colors a pup could be born were yellowish tones, or even red, which had been Kaya's case. Often, baby fur gave adults a clue of what color the youngling's adult fur would be.

Clawders were a different case.

They could be born with any baby fur tone, but for some reason, when they started to grow their adult fur, it always turned out sable black. No matter if their baby fur was brown, or blue, or orange, they always grew black fur when they came of age. Most attributed this to the training and experiences they went through to become Clawders.

Unlike most other ranks in the Chezamon Tribe, the Clawder status could not be inherited from your father, or you could not be promoted to one. No, Clawders were carefully _chosen _at birth from Noble, and in some occasions, Hunter's litters; the smartest, strongest, most advanced newborn was chosen and had a short bandanna wrapped around their necks to distinguish them from their siblings until they could live without a mother's nourishment. After that, the selected pup would be taken away from his parents and siblings to be trained apart in all kinds of combat. All Clawders were male; there had never been reports of a female being chosen for being a Clawder.

Official Clawders often wore golden armor, which to humans would look almost like a samurai armor for dogs or wolves. It was red and gold in color, with some pieces of black leather. It protected the Clawders' chest, back, legs and there was also an additional piece of armor for the tail. Most of the helmets had a more medieval design, and they sported a feather-like tuft of hair on their heads, always green in color.

The Clawders instantly reacted when they heard a branch twitching, and took a fighting position, just in case a Chamil attacked. Shaoran did not move a paw, however; he already knew the scent of the creature coming out of the bushes. Before the Clawders could strike, Shaoran lifted his left paw and spoke, "No. It's her."

The Clawders calmed down when they saw as the female human 'pup' came out of the bushes with a face of worry drawn in her features.

"Where are my friends?" she asked in alarm, approaching the trio, but growing uncomfortable with the Clawders staring indifferently at her.

"They're in the Den, on the Court Chamber. I am to take you there, but I have to warn you; Hukaro is the Beta Male and one of the most powerful Chezamon in the Tribe, so try not to make him angry." The Hunter rested so that Luna could climb on his back, "Syena is not as stern, but still she distrusts outsiders."

Once on top of Shaoran's back, Luna nodded, now with a serious expression. Shaoran turned to the Clawders and muttered a single, "Let's go."

* * *

><p>Tom was very uncomfortable when a few of the present Chezamon walked closer to them and sniffed them. By the looks on his friends' faces, he could tell they didn't like it at all either. But Kaya had whispered to them that in their Tribe, stepping aside when you were being sniffed was rude, as if saying ' Stay away from me.' So, he had to comply when the Chezamon sniffed even some 'parts' in which he couldn't help but shudder when he felt the Creatures' hot breath.<p>

When the one named Ryuu walked closer to inspect them, he gave them a curious stare, his pupils completely dilated, giving him a rather 'funny' look. He was wagging his tail in curiosity, and his ears were up, almost making him look like a…

No. They had learned the bad way that you should _never_ refer to a Chezamon as 'dog' a few minutes ago, when Peyton accidentally called Hukaro a dog.

In fact, it was only thanks to Syena that Peyton was still breathing.

"So…" Kaz spoke up, deciding to bring up the reason they had gone there in the first place, "If we told you what you want to know, would you let us see your leaders?"

The red-haired human soon regretted having asked that, because Hukaro and Syena gave him an almost aggressive look.

Ryuu, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow, "The Alphas? Why would a pack of strange creatures like you want to see the Alphas?"

Sarah spoke, "We'd like to ask them something concerning the other Tribes-"

She was interrupted abruptly when Hukaro lunged at her and pinned her to the ground, putting his massive paw over he throat and snapping his teeth at her.

"What do you know bout the other Tribes?!" he snarled, but was quickly pushed aside by Ryuu before he crushed the female human.

"Be more respectful to a female!" Ryuu snapped, baring his fangs

"She is not a member of our Tribe!" Hukaro snarled back, "Why should I show respect to her?!"

"Member of our Tribe or not, she is still a female!" Syena stood between the two males before they could start to fight, "And please, Hukaro, don't embarrass yourself and us by acting this way just for a single human!" She narrowed her eyes, "you wouldn't want _her_ to find out through the Nobles what you are doing to a girl?"

Sarah didn't understand any of it, but she could tell that females in this Tribe were respected and treated as such. She was starting to like these guys. Hukaro leaned his ears against his skull and grumbled something about 'being ordered around by a lieutenant' before going back to his place.

Syena stared at the four humans as Ryuu went to take a place next to Hukaro (to annoy him, of course). He didn't get his eyes off the humans for a second.

"While Shaoran and the pup arrive, I hope you don't mind I start questioning you right now," Syena spoke after a while, "First of all, how did you find us?"

The group was not sure of who should answer the questions, but Tom decided it wouldn't help trying to figure that out in that moment; Hukaro was not the patient type of Creature, and if they took too long to answer he might attempt to attack again. The black-haired human gathered his courage and stepped to the front, ignoring his friends' worried looks.

"When we came here for the first time, we were simply looking out of curiosity. We had heard about you from the other players, and we figured we could get some scans, but we had to port out to avoid being coded. Luna was the one who met a Hunter and befriended him."

Kaya's ears went flat, and his eyes opened wide in shock; was the human actually going to say the Hunter had been him? Hukaro would have his head! At least he hoped the humans would not give the others away; he was already used to Hukaro's punishments, being subjected to them almost daily, but Rocket and the others were not.

"A Hunter befriended her?" Hukaro's fur bristled, and his lips curled into a snarl, "Who?! Is she met him, that means you must know about him! So tell us! Who?!"

"Excuse me, miss, but we'd rather not tell the Hunter's name unless he wants to. We wouldn't want to cause him any trouble," Tom preferred speaking to Syena; at least she didn't snarl at him when he made a wrong comment.

Syena nodded, "I understand."

Kaya, Jerome and Rocker discreetly sighed in relief.

The lieutenant continued with the interrogatory, "How many are there in your pack?"

This time it was Kaz who answered the question, "Only the four of us and Luna, we swear!"

Syena accepted the answer, but her ears twitched when she caught the sound of paw steps just outside. She turned towards the entrance of the chamber and saw Shaoran and the two Clawders trotting in, the human pup in the Hunter's back. Kaz didn't care if Hukaro chased after him, he ran towards the trio and as soon as his sister got off the Chezamon's back, he started checking for any injuries.

"Luna, are you alright?!" he frantically stuttered, "Weren't you hurt?! What happened?!"

Ryuu rolled his eyes and Hukaro let out a frustrated sigh; they had assumed the orange-furred human was a weakling, but this was ridiculous. Not even pupsitters were that panicky.

"I'm fine, Kaz!" Luna finally stepped away from her brother and walked towards Syena rather calmly, which surprised the Chezamon, "Excuse me for being late, miss."

The lieutenant couldn't help but smile, "It's okay, dear. There's one more question I'd like to ask-"

"Actually, my dear, there's something I'd like to ask our… guests." Ryuu spoke up, interrupting the female again; he knew she hated being interrupted, but this was important, "If you don't mind, of course."

Syena gave him a hard stare before sighing, "Fine, I'll take it."

Ryuu's fiery red eyes set on the group of humans, "The same question I said earlier, pups. Why do you want to see the Alphas?"

The humans didn't like being referred to as pups, but they were in no position to complain about it. Luna just stared at the group in confusion. Whatever had happened while she was in her drome match, it surely didn't sound like they had a tea party.

Hukaro and Syena didn't comment anything; Ryuu had every reason to ask that to outsiders. After all, as Captain of the Clawders, the Alphas' security was almost always resting on his shoulders. The gray-furred Chezamon himself was actually examining the humans' physiology.

"_Bipedal, no claws or canines, they don't seem to be the hunting type of creatures, they're probably vegetarian,_" he thought, but he couldn't help taking a look at Sarah for a few minutes before resuming with the others, "_They have no tail, their ears are small, as well as their noses. Why they only grow fur on their heads, I can't tell._"

The four teenage humans nodded at each other, and Peyton decided it was his turn to speak.

"Well, I don't you guys don't want the other Tribes to know about you, but…" Peyton gulped nervously, "… They kinda know about you now."

Alarmed gasps echoed through the room, coming mostly from the nobles on the side. The Clawders kept their indifferent faces, though they did open their eyes a little as soon as they heard it. Even Hukaro and Ryuu couldn't help but open their mouths agape and lean their ears back; Syena was the only one who kept her calm, although she did show a hint of alarm. Kaya and Rocket looked at each other in worry, while Jerome gave Shaoran a quick look; the red and lilac Hunter had the same expressionless face as the Clawders, as if he had expected this from the humans.

"You…" Hukaro started growling, and bristling his fur like a cat, approached the group menacingly, "You spread it out, didn't you?!"

Luna spoke up, "You guys promised you wouldn't tell _anyone_!"

Kaz gulped, "Sorry, Luna, but they were very persuasive!"

Sarah took word, "Listen, it was not out intention at first! But the M'arrillians could attack anytime, and so we figured the other Tribes could use your help! But we didn't tell to the entire Tribes! Only some of the Creatures we know, and they swore to keep quiet, but they did ask us to mention a possibility of a treaty with you!"

This time, the Chezamon were speechless. The name the female had just spoken was unknown to them.

"Who are these…" Ryuu struggled to pronounce the word correctly, "… M'arrillians?"

Now it was the humans' who were speechless. They didn't know about the M'arrillians? Perhaps the Chezamon had not been present when the M'arrillians first attacked, or they didn't remember them at all. Anyway, they would have to explain it to them.

* * *

><p>Faash couldn't sleep.<p>

This time of the year made him feel especially forlorn and sorrowful. It had been _her_ favorite time of the year; she had loved the season when the pink, sweet fungus was sold, and it was the only time of the year Mandiblors were given a few free days…

A female Danian was _extremely_ rare, they were only born about every 100 hundred years, and when they were, they were raised to succeed the Queen. However, this time a not only a female was born, but _two_.

Initially, one of them was going to be destroyed, but for some reason, the Queen decided otherwise. While one was raised to succeed the current Queen, the other was raised as a hatchling caretaker: apparently, Lore had a theory that females were much more efficient at caring for infants than males were.

Faash was just a child when she hatched.

From the moment they met, they had been very good friends, and they grew up together, even though she had been taken aside a few years later to be raised in a different way. For about 5 years, they didn't see each other at all; Faash was busy with his work as Mandiblor, and she was busy training for her future job. When they reached adulthood, they were allowed to see each other again; and surprisingly, Lore's theory had been correct. The hatchlings adored the female Danian, and they worked even harder than the hatchlings raised by a male caretaker.

Faash sighed sadly; it turned out that his affection for her had turned into love, and she loved him back. Some nights, they would secretly meet at Oipoint's lookout when the winged guard went to sleep, and they would talk about simple things like what they had been doing or if they could hang out some time.

Then the day arrived.

A squad of Mandiblors and their Squadleader were sent to the Forest of Life, without consulting Raznus, in order to find a potential resource of Roth shards for making more Stingblades, and she had been chosen to accompany them as a healer. The last day before the squad departed, they had met at the Reservoir one last time… that night, she became _his_, and his alone. The next day, she departed.

Faash could swear he felt tears forming in the corners on the corners of his eyes; he would never forget the day he learned the squad sent to the Forest of Life disappeared… after three long days, the team never answered the Hive Calls, as if they had simply disappeared. She was never heard from again…

The Danian Elementalist closed his eyes, not wanting to recall any more painful memories.

She wouldn't want him to be lingering on the past.

She wouldn't…

* * *

><p>There was an eerie silence across the chamber, and the group of humans felt rather… uncomfortable with all the Chezamon's stares fixed on them. They often hoped the present Chezamon eventually left the room to resume their business, or at least get their stares off them. But no, the Creatures would not removed their eyes from the humans, it seemed as if they wanted to see what they were thinking. In fact, some Nobles would even walk towards the humans, but when they attempted to 'smell' them (Kaya and the others explained to the group earlier that it is a custom to smell strangers to learn their scent, so that the Prey Drive would not target them in the future), the Clawders got in the way and asked the members of nobility not to walk any closer.<p>

After explaining to Ryuu, Hukaro and Syena about the M'arrillian invasion, and how the tribe of mind-controllers could return anytime to strike back, the trio of Chezamon left for the Alphas' chamber to discuss what to do, or if they should intervene.

"I'm getting bored, guys," Kaz sighed, staring at the Kaya, Rocket, Jerome and Shaoran, who had been told to keep an eye on the humans, "Do we really have to stay here until they decide what to do?"

Jerome frowned, "Well, since you revealed our existence to the Tribes, and that has not happened since 9 solems, it is normal that they take long in deciding what to do about it."

Luna gave Kaz a small punch on the shoulder, "You promised you wouldn't tell anyone!"

"Wait a minute! Look, like we told that… Hukaro, guy… we didn't tell the entire Tribes, only the Creatures we know. If the M'arrillians strike back, you could be a great help." Tom spoke firmly, but started to tremble when Shaoran set his slit pupils on him.

"Again with those M'arrillians!" Shaoran bristled his fur, "What's so important about those M'arrillians that you had to disclose our secret to the… Creatures?"

Sarah crossed her arms, "Weren't you listening?! The M'arrillians can control the minds of Creatures and turn them against their Tribes!"

Rocket raised an eyebrow, "And what makes you think our Alphas would want to fight against a Tribe that can do that?"

Before Sarah could reply, a flash of pink flew into the room, followed by four Clawders, who were running hot on its heels. All the present Chezamon set their eyes on the flash of pink.

"Princess! It's not safe!" one of them cried

"I just want to take a peek at the outsiders! Besides, I can take care of myself!" a female voice replied in annoyance.

A female Chezamon of a moderate cherry pink landed a few steps away from the humans. However, unlike most of the Chezamon they had seen, she had feathered wings, like Kazehana, but she was obviously not the same type of winged Chezamon as the Skyguard, judging by her size and body. Her tail was like a wolf's but long and sleek; she had a cake pink underbelly, face and paws. She had light yellow paws, followed by small specks of purple in her front paws and pink in her back legs. However, what made her stand out from the other Chezamon was that she had _hair_ –not only fur, she had a mane of long, wavy hair cascading from her head. It was divided in three colors; dark violet, moderate rose and pale gold. Her hair covered the right side of her face slightly, but her moderate blue eyes could still be seen. It was very long, almost reaching the floor on the right side of her face, while on the left side, her hair barely reached her shoulders.

In other words, she could be called _hot_ in Chezamon standards.

"Princess Fen!" The group of humans saw that all of the present Chezamon bowed before the pink-furred winged female, so they did the same, just in case.

The Clawders finally caught up to the princess and stood between her and the human, baring their teeth at them.

Fen rolled her eyes and gently pushed her guardians aside with her wings before folding them, "It's alright, they are not that dangerous! If it was a Chamil, it's one thing, but these…" Fen examined the humans curiously, "… Outsiders don't look like they can hurt a fly."

Tom trembled when the princess walked close and started sniffing him, her pupils dilated and her tail wagging slightly, "Wow…" he heard her say, "I have never seen an outsider this close. I had heard they walked on two legs, but…." She targeted Tom's hair, "Why do you only grow fur on your heads? What about the rest of your body? I don't want to imagine how you protect yourselves from Zimaburya's blizzards."

"Who's is Zimaburya?" Luna inquired, but Kaya gave her a soft nudge with his paw.

Fen stared at the human pup in surprise, "He's the Spirit of Winter, of course."

This time, the Chezamon Princess started sniffing Luna, much to Kaz's dismay, but he was in no position to complain.

"Which tribe are you from?" Fen inquired, "You don't look like Mipedians or Danians, so I guess you must be from the Overworld, am I right?"

"Well, actually, princess, we're not from Perim, we're from-" Peyton stopped abruptly when he realized something, "Wait, you know about the other Tribes?"

Fen smiled slightly, "Well, I don't have much to do with _them _following me around," she discretely motioned to the Clawders, "So I usually spend my time reading the archives in the Library. It doesn't hurt to know about the outside word, if I can't actually go out without escorting."

The pink-furred Chezamon sighed slightly and muttered in low voice, "Sometimes I feel like a bird in a cage…" she set her sapphire blue eyes on the group, "Oh, where are my manners? My name is D'Aurora Fenniris, but you may call me Fen." After saying this, she gave the group a smile.

Suddenly, the large doors that led into the Throne Chamber opened and Syena and Ryuu walked out. Luna and the others repressed a laugh when Ryuu spotted the princess and discretely freaked out.

"P-Princess! What are you doing near those humans?! We don't know if they can be trusted yet!" he stuttered in shock, "They might be assassins!"

"Seriously?!" Tom spoke outloud in irritation, "If we were assassins, don't you think we would have to be strong enough to overcome a member of your nobility! You're way bigger than us, for goodness sake!"

Fen giggled when she saw the look on Ryuu's face; eventually, Ryuu peered his ears down in embarrassment, but gave glare to Kaya and Jerome when he noticed they were trying to repress a laugh. He didn't mind the Princess laughing at his sometimes overdramatic reactions, but Hunters? Never!

Syena rolled her eyes and addressed to Tom, "Are you the Alpha of the human pack?"

Tom remained silent, not knowing what to say, until Rocket whispered in his ear, "She's asking if you're the leader of the group."

"Well…" Tom gulped, "I'm not exactly the leader, but… you could call me that."

"Very well. The Alphas will see you, but only _you_." Syena warned, then pointed at the other humans with her paw, "The rest will wait here."

Kaz groaned in frustration, "_Seriously? They'll make us wait again!_"

Tom turned to see at his friends, who gave him reassuring looks, and followed Syena and Ryuu (not before the gray Chezamon motioned for his Clawders to take Princess Fen again, much to her annoyance). He heard the gates close behind, but ignored it when he stared at the Throne room more closely.

It was almost like the previous chamber, but it was adorned with tapestries, made out of various tones of emerald green, and golden trimming. The symbol of the Chezamon Tribe, the crescent moon with claw marks slashing it, was carefully trimmed in the middle of those tapestries. At the end of the chamber, there were large cushions, which served as seats for the Alpha Male and Female, and surrounding it were dark green, velvet curtains. Hukaro sat a few steps away from the thrones, staring at the human with a hostile expression. Tom trembled when he spotted Baojia and Dryla staring indifferently at him from their seats. What would be their verdict?

"So…" Baojia narrowed his eyes, "This is the alpha of the human pack?"

Tom felt a shiver run down his spine when the Chezamon spoke, he liked it better when he didn't talk at all. To enworse things, there were Clawders surrounding he Alphas, and he felt like they would tear him to pieces if he made a wrong move. Syena could sense the fear emanating off Tom, and so decided to answer for him.

"Yes, he is, Your Majesty," she said.

Dryla stared at Tom for a while, before speaking, "We've come to the decision that, while the concerns of the other Tribes are not our concern. If they go at war with the M'arrillians, it's their problem, and theirs alone. The last time we attempted to meddle in the other Tribes' business, our Tribe was almost wiped off the face of Perim."

Finally, Tom gathered the courage to speak, "With all due respect, your Majesty, I don't mean that you should stick your noses in others' business…" he trembled when he saw the Clawders bristling their fur and snarling, "… I just mean that you should give them another chance. Whatever they did to you in the past, it's all happened, and it can't be changed. They have changed, and there's no reason to fear being ostracized."

Hukaro bristled his fur and walked towards the human, "You expect us to trust Creatures that we haven't seen for solems? That didn't know, or perhaps even care, that we existed at all? Besides, like Lady Dryla just said, It's not our problem whatever happens to Perim.

That was it.

"But it _is_ your problem!" Tom shouted, earning shocked stares from the present Chezamon, and took a few steps towards Hukaro, "Listen carefully, pal! You don't know this, but the M'arrillians attacked not long ago and they nearly flooded _all_ of Perim," when he said this, he earned shocked gasps and stares, "And believe me, Mist Forest is located in the Forest of Life, so don't tell me it wouldn't have affected you! The other Tribes barely managed to defeat the M'arrillians, but it they strike back, who knows what may happen!"

Tom attempted to approach the Alphas, but two Clawders stood in the way, baring their fangs, but the human didn't mind any longer, "... Please, your Majesties. Just think about it. One chance, that's all they ask. They can prove they have changed."

"…"

Neither Baojia nor Dryla said anything for a while, processing the information in their brains. The M'arrillians had tried to flood Perim… The human was right in that point, it would have affected them as much as the other Tribes. They were running low on resources as well, especially now that the Winter was coming. With a sigh of resignation, Baojia finally spoke.

"Very well, then." He said in a grim tone, "You may disclose the secret to the Tribes,"

Hukaro's eyes nearly popped out of his skull.

Ryuu sighed and closed his eyes shut.

Syena looked down, knowing there was nothing she could do.

Tom smiled in relief, but before he could speak, Baojia lifted a wing.

"But… on one condition." He continued, "Each Tribe of Perim will send a team of delegates, and they will spend three seasons here. We will judge if they are worth of our trust. If we consider they have truly changed their ways, then we will be open for the idea of a treaty. If they are still the same selfish, war-driven Creatures that we remember, they will be leaving Mist Forest and leave us alone. Forever. Am I clear?"

Tom thought for a minute. The condition was very risky, but it was better than nothing.

"I accept you terms," he spoke, "But if I may ask, what about me and my friends."

This time, Dryla spoke, "Since your species does not seem to be a danger to us, we shall allow you and your pack of five to roam the Underground Den as much as you please," she said before narrowing her eyes, "But if you are told not to go into an area, you are to obey with no protest. Also, the Inner Chamber and the Armory are completely off-limits for you."

Tom nodded eagerly, but before darting out, he decided to be polite, "Excuse me, may I go now?"

Baojia nodded, "You are free to go. And remember, if the Tribes can convince us that they are worth of making an alliance with, we won't object. But if they don't…"

Tom nodded before running out of the chamber, followed by Ryuu and Syena, not before the two gave the Alphas a respect bow. As soon as they were gone, Hukaro gave the Alphas an incredulous look.

"Your Majesties, with all due respect, I don't think this is such a good idea. We have isolated ourselves from Perim and been peaceful since then, but-" he stopped when Baojia lifted a wing.

"Hukaro, I know you don't want our Tribe to be exterminated, but I'm afraid that human was right. Whatever happens to Perim will affect us, and judging by how they described these… M'arrillians, they must be very dangerous. I doubt we would be able to defend ourselves on our own; perhaps a treaty would be the best course of action if that were to happen."

Knowing he had no way of dissuading the Alphas, Hukaro sighed in defeat and walked out of the Throne Chamber.

"Bao…" and the Alpha Male turned to his mate as the childhood nickname left her lips, "I hope we are not making a mistake,"

"Me too, Dry…" he replied grimly, "Me too…"


	11. Preparing for The Guests

Legend of The Chezamon

Chapter 11- Preparing for The Guests

Luna had stayed behind at the Den while Kaz and the others went to tell their respective Tribes about Baojia's decision. Since the Chezamon had not had any visitors in solems, they knew nothing of the other Tribes' tastes and likes, so Luna offered herself to help them. After Baojia's decision was revealed to the rest of the Tribe, most Chezamon panicked. They didn't like the idea of having strangers wandering freely around their home, but there was nothing they could do. A few others, mugicians in particular, saw this as a chance to study the other Tribes in case of a potential war.

Kaya's group was among the many Hunters assigned to prepare the guests' sleeping chambers, and that's when Luna saw a female Chezamon, other than princess Fen, for the firs time.

The particular female she had set her eyes on was much shorter than her male counterparts, and her legs and body were thinner. Also, she had a more dog-like head, even though her golden cat-like eyes and reptilian nose were still present. Her ears were pointy and wolf-like, like a male's, and her tail was less bushy. She was of a silvery gray color, with white face, underbelly and legs. Hikari was her name, and apparently she was a long-time friend of Kaya and the others.

Right then, they were working on the Mipedians' bedchambers. They had adorned it with plants reminiscent of the plants native to the Mipedian Desert, and had painted a few golden trimmings on the rocky walls of the cavern. However, since they had no real beds (Chezamon slept on nest-like beds made out of straw, grass and sticks), Chezamon had to improvise. For the first time in their lives, they had to capture Storkrans and pluck their feathers to make pillows, according to Luna's instructions.

Kaya let out a sneeze as one of the feathers in his pillow floated up to his nose.

"How can you sleep with these things?!" he growled, letting out another sneeze, "I think I'm getting a cold!"

Rocket rolled his eyes as he stuffed his own pillow, "Well, perhaps if you hadn't used the sheath of the pillow to knead…"

Indeed, the Kaya's pillow sheath was now ragged and filled with tiny holes.

"What? I my claws were crooking!"

"What do you think scratching posts are for?" Shaoran added in annoyance before going back to his work, carefully using the tip of his tail as a paint brush on the walls.

"Scratching posts?" Luna inquired from her place, sitting on one of the straw beds, "But you're wolf-like. In my world, scratching posts as for cats."

Jerome turned to look at her and tilted his head in confusion, "What's a cat?"

"Here are the last feathers," Hikari walked into the cavern, with saddlebags filled with feathers on her back, and let out a sigh when she spotted Kaya's attempt at making a pillow, "You kneaded on the sheath again, didn't you?"

Kaya let out a dismayed sigh, "You too? On whose side are you, Hikari?"

Hikari rolled her eyes as she placed the saddlebags on the ground, before turning to Luna, "By the way, sweetie, the hunters in charge of the Danians' bedchambers need your help."

Luna stood up and followed Hikari, not before waving at the four Hunters. She followed the Huntress through large underground tunnels and caverns illuminated by torches until they came to a great underground chasm, one of the few present, with ramshackle slums and bridges stretching out along and across the chasm. At the bottom of the chasm (which wasn't very deep) there were lights from torches, and Luna could spot various tents and posts, the marketplace, but none of the shops had opened yet. The two ways of getting down to the marketplace were the stairs, tunnels leading downwards, and the elevator, a wooden platform connected to gears which could go down and up equally, but it was quite fragile.

At first, the Chezamon had wanted to put the bedchambers in caves close to each other, but the humans dissuaded them from that, stating that some Tribes didn't get along with others at all. So, separate cavers were picked out.

Hikari led Luna into one of the chambers, the Danians' bedchamber, where Hunters were still working on the beds. Sorka, Razor and a few other Hunters were there; one of the Hunters noticed the two females' presence and walked towards them.

He had solid brown fur, with light yellow paws, underbelly and face. Dark gray tiger stripes ran down his back, and curiously, his ears were not completely erected, like the others, it gave him an almost collie-like look.

"Hey, there, girl!" he spoke cheerfully, "How are you doing? I wanted to ask you if Danians like candies, because I wanted to fill the pillows with candies but the others won't let me!"

Sorka rolled his eyes, "Toba, for the last time, candies are not for filling pillows! It will attract roaches!"

Hikari whispered into Luna's ear, "That's Toba, don't worry if he seems annoying; he's actually the happiest Hunter around, and he simply loves to make others laugh, even if it annoys them. But he's a nice guy."

"Luna, could you convince him? I've done what I could, and he doesn't listen, so I'm going to eat some candies!" Toba hopped out of the room, making Luna giggled at both the Hunter's rather funny antics and Sorka's annoyed expression.

Just then, Princess Fen dashed into the room, looking for somewhere to hide; all present Hunters bowed as soon as she entered, but they were confused when Fen attempted to hide under one of the straw beds.

"Fen?" Luna inquired, forgetting to refer to her as required, "What are you doing?"

"Shh!" Fen hushed her, "I'm trying to get away from the Clawders! I just can't stand it! I can't go to the bathroom without them following me! It's completely annoying!"

Hikari peeked outside the room and saw that, indeed, three Clawders were looking around the tunnels, searching for a sign of the princess. Although the Hunters would be scolded if they were found to have hidden the princess from her escort, the present Hunters, Hikari included, stood up as tall as they could, and Fen hid behind them, hoping the Clawders would not spot her. Luna just watched as the Clawders peeked into the room and, when they thought the princess was not in there, walked away to continue their search somewhere else.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Fen walked out of her hiding place behind the Hunters, "Thank you, guys. I've been trying to escape from them for a while."

"No problem, princess," Hikari smiled, "We're just doing our job."

"So, whose chamber is this?"

"The Danians'," one of the Hunters replied as he returned to fixing the beds.

"Hey, Luna, what are they like?" Fen inquired as she rested on the stone floor, "There's not much about the other Tribes in the records."

"Well, the Danians are like overgrown ants," Luna explained, "They're very picky about security; in fact, before we met you, we thought Danian security was the most efficient in Perim."

"Remind me to bug those Danian guys," Razor teasingly commented, making Luna giggle.

"I wonder how the others Tribes will come here, if they have not put a foot in here."

"I think the Alphas will send a patrol to guide them here, and pray nothing happens."

Luna looked down, "Me too, guys. Me too."

* * *

><p>"Three seasons?" Maxxor voice echoed in his study, in both surprise and delight, "If we send those delegates for three months, the Chezamon will agree to make a treaty with us?"<p>

"Actually, the Chezamon want the four tribes to send them delegates," Tom explained, "And they will decided whether it's safe to make an alliance with you, but I'm not sure what Tribe they will choose."

Maxxor's smile faded away, it meant that the Creatures he chose would probably have to interact with the other Tribes.

"It means we'll have to live next to Underworlders?!" Viqtarr's voice sounded irritated, the thought of being an Underworlder's neighbor sickened him.

Before Tom arrived, Maxxor had called Tangath Toborn, Intress, Viqtarr, Bodhal and Najarin into his chambers to hear what Tom had to say about the Chezamon. However, now that they heard the other Tribes would be involved, they were not so sure if it was such a good idea.

"Who cares about the Underworlders?!" Bodhal cried out in excitement, "This will be the perfect chance to study the unexplored parts of the Forest of Life and find sources of Roth Shards!"

"If the Underworlders don't do it first," Intress commented, looking away in disgust.

"Look everyone, I know it's not going to be comfortable, but the Alphas were very clear when they said that if they didn't see you have changed your ways, as they put it, they won't make any alliance with any of the Tribes."

Viqtarr interrupted, "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It means that we will have to try and put our differences with the other Tribes aside for the sake of the alliance," Najarin replied with a stern look, making Viqtarr look away.

Tom lifted his arms in exasperation, "Guys, you should be thinking more about who you are going to send, don't you think?"

Tangath stepped to the front with a determined look on his face, "I offer myself to go, I'm sure we will convince them that our Tribe it's the best choice for an alliance."

"Thank you, my friend," Maxxor put a hand on Tangath's shoulder, "In fact, I'm putting you in charge of the mission."

"I believe Frafdo and Intress would be a good choice as well," Najarin suggested, "I'm sure they will be able to handle the situation with a cool mind."

"What about you, Najarin?" Tom inquired, "Aren't you going?"

Najarin shook his head, "I'm afraid I'm too old for these kin of missions, I will leave it to the younger generations."

"What about me?" Viqtarr raised his hand, "I want to prove that we're much better than the other Tribes."

"I'm afraid that you're not precisely…" Maxxor looked for an appropriate word, "patient about these situations. We need someone who can control their temper and live along the other Tribes, especially Underworlders, as long as you stay there."

Viqtarr crossed his arms and muttered something under his breath; Tom looked towards the direction of the Forest of Life, wondering how Luna was doing.

* * *

><p>"Unacceptable!" Chaor stomped his foot on the ground in anger, "Perhaps you misunderstood what they said and they only want the Underworlders to go!"<p>

"I understood what they said perfectly!" Kaz smacked his forehead in frustration, "They want the _four_ Tribes to go to Mist Forest and prove they've changed their ways! But listen" IF you cause a fight with any of the other Tribes, the Chezamon will not be happy about it. They were serious about the whole thing!"

Chaor muttered something about 'having to live with giant bugs, overgrown lizards and surface-kissing Creatures' before turning to Takinom, who had been listening to the whole discussion, "Go get Agitos, Nivenna and Rothar. They will be going to Mist Forest, and you will be accompanying them." He made a mental note to wash his tongue with soap later for what he was about to say, "And you need to make sure to explain them not to cause problems once they are there."

Takinom nodded and, flapping her wings, flew out of Chaor's bedchambers through the balcony to accomplish her task. Chaor looked back at Kaz.

"Once Takinom brings them, I need to tell us every detail about the Chezamon. Their customs, their beliefs, and overall, their Battlegear and mugic.

"I can tell you a bit about their customs, but I don't know much about their battlegear or mugic. We are not allowed to go to the armory." Kaz explained.

"It doesn't matter, as long as you can prevent us from offending those Chezamon is fine."

It took a while for the Creatures Chaor had summoned to arrive, for they had been tending to other business. When they were complete, Kaz proceeded to explain what he knew about the Chezamon's customs, which was not much. All he could tell them was about the Clawders, the structure of the Underground Den and their technique to paralyze Creatures and humans alike.

He finally understood how his teachers at school felt when he was bombarded with questions.

* * *

><p>Peyton gulped nervously.<p>

After returning to Al-Mipedim and explaining to Vinta and Siado what he had been told, they insisted on taking the news to the Mipedian royals, even though Peyton was still afraid of showing his face in front of Prince Mudeenu. He was not known for liking humans in the least, which made it even scarier for the Mipedian player.

To think that the prince had been listening to the conversation all along; apparently, Siado had informed of the situation, and Mudeenu insisted on being present when Peyton returned from Mist Forest. Sobtjek and Ario had 'accidentally' overheard their conversation as well, and asked permission to be present as well. They actually had to, anyway, since Peyton had returned precisely when they were discussing if they could stay or not.

"So we must send delegates to Mist Forest?" Mudeenu's voice made Peyton tremble, as if he wanted to eat him or something.

"Y-Yep, your Highness," Peyton gulped the lump in his throat and tried to sound calm, "But as I just said, the other Tribes are going too, so I suggest you send someone who doesn't have any grudges unless you want to lose potential allies."

Mudeenu didn't say anything for a while; this was harder than he originally thought. Sobtjek and Ario were already in his mind, maybe Siado and Vinta would be useful in case the other Tribes attempted a sabotage attempt. There was someone else he had in mind, but immediately scolded himself for even thinking about it, although… perhaps they could eave him there. A smirk appeared on the Royal Mipedian's lips as he turned to look at Sobtjek, "Sobtjek, get _him_."

The Mipedian Mugician seemed to have no reaction, but Peyton could see his eyes opening slightly in surprise and, if he knew him well, he would think dismay, "Are you sure, your Highness? You know he's prone to accidents…"

"Exactly… Perhaps he could become stranded somewhere."

Peyton had no idea what they were talking about, but judging by the looks in the Mipedians' faces, he guessed they wanted to get rid of someone who was not precisely popular among the Tribe. The Chaotic player stiffened when Mudeenu turned to give him a glance, "And you are coming with us to see Iflar, and you will explain to him what the Chezamon told you. Before we send delegates, he has to approve it," The Mipedian royal looked down, "I don't like it, I think it's a waste of time, but I can do nothing about it."

Peyton couldn't do anything as Siado and Vinta led him out of the latter's home to the palace.

* * *

><p>Odu-Bathax was getting impatient.<p>

Sarah had been caught in Wamma and the others' nest, and she had been taken to him to be interrogated… again. She was a common sight in Mount Pillar, and the Danians were already accustomed to her presence, but that didn't mean she was free to roam the place as she pleased.

When she was taken to the interrogatory room, Aimukk and Faash were already there, trying to convince Odu that she had simply gone to tell them a message from the Sixth Tribe, which he didn't believe, of course. He assumed they were trying to get him to let her go. Eventually, Wamma joined them and tried to reason with the Battlemaster, with no avail.

Only they were present in the room, since at the mention of a sixth Tribe, Odu-Bathax ordered most of the guards in the room to leave, confident that he could deal with Sarah alone. Aimukk had been charged with her scanner, and he was doubting the Battlemaster would listen.

"Seriously!" Sarah snapped in annoyance, "How many times do I have to repeat it to you?! I came to deliver a message!"

"As if," Odu-Bathax snorted, "If there was actually a sixth Tribe, we would already know it."

"Think again," Sarah rolled her eyes, "No one knew about their existence, I bet not even the M'arrillians know about them! How can I prove to you I'm telling the truth?!"

"Unless you can bring a member of that supposed sixth Tribe, there's no way you can prove it."

Aimukk thought for a moment, then spoke, "Hey, Sarah, did any of your friends stay back at… Mist Forest, right?"

Sara remembered Kaz's younger sister, "Yes! Luna! She's there, and I bet she's with Kaya right now!"

Odu-Bathax turned to look at the three Mandiblors, who flinched in fear, "Who's this Kaya?"

"He's…" Wamma grew nervous, "… a friend of Sarah."

"Look," Sarah called the Battlemaster's attention again, "If you let me use my scanner, I'll call Luna and I'll tell her to show you that I'm telling the truth."

Odu-Bathax seemed to consider it, and Wamma took advantage of it to take Wamma's scanner from his fellow Mandiblor, and slip it to Sarah. When the Battlemaster realized it, Sarah was already calling.

"Come on, take the call…"

"I'll deal with you later, Wamma!" Odu growled before setting his sight on Sarah and walking menacingly towards her.

Suddenly, Sorka's head appeared on the scanner, "Hey, Luna," he called to the unseen Mipedian player, "How do I answer this thing? The noise is irritating!"

"Give me that!" Odu-Bathax snatched Sarah's scanner, and e examined the picture.

Faash, Wamma and Aimukk tried hardly to contain snickers when he saw who was talking on the scanner.

Sorka, having heard the struggle occurring in the scanner, returned his gaze to the scanner's screen, and his face changed to one of shock and disgust, "Hey, What's with the bug-face here?"

Odu-Bathax overcame his shock to give the Chezamon a scowl, "Did you just call me a bug?!"

"Sorka, give me that." Luna's face appeared on the scanner's screen, and Sorka moved away, "Hey, Odu-Bathax, I suppose you just met Sorka."

Sarah crossed her arms in annoyance, "Do you believe me now?"

"By the way, Odu-Bathax, in case you haven't let Sarah tell you, the Chezamon want the four Tribes to send delegate to Mist Forest to spend three seasons there. I have to go, and don't be too harsh on Sarah, would you?"

Saying this, the Mipedian player hung up the call. Odu-Bathax felt both indignation and anger at the human's tone, speaking to him as if she knew him or something. That made him stomp a foot on the ground. But he didn't give it much thought of who he was going to send… him included.

After all, he had an unfinished argue with the dog-like Creature who called him 'bug.'

* * *

><p>"So that was a Danian?" Sorka exclaimed in surprise, "He wasn't precisely attractive."<p>

"To think we'll be having more like him, and from the other Tribes, living here!"

Luna had left not long after receiving Sarah's call, and the Chezamon were talking about their future guests.

Jerome whimpered, peering his ears back, "I'm nervous!"

Ryuu, who had been passing by in search of Princess Fen, had joined the Hunters in their conversation, "For once, I agree withal of you. I still don't think it's such a good idea, I don't care what Hukaro says!"

"Kaya snickered, "You never care about what Hukaro says, remember?"

Ryuu frowned and looked away, offended.

"What about the pups and the civilians?" Shaoran inquired, "What will they do with the newcomers?"

"Well, I think the pups were forbidden to approach the outsiders until they are found to be trustworthy." Rocket replied.

The red-furred Chezamon sighed in dismay, "That's going to be a problem."

Pups. They were much smaller in size than adults, being the size of adult cats (as Luna put it when she first saw one) and lacked any kind of markings; they were covered in baby fluff of varying cake colors. Their eyes were round and big, with ridiculously dilated pupils, which gave them a rather cute appearance.

Pups were very curious, and they looked for anything to play with. Sticks, stones, battlegear, which a careless Hunter (Kaya) left near the Inner Chamber, or even with the adults' tails. Pupsitters often had to keep them inside their respective Inner chambers and didn't let them go out until their parents returned for them.

In the aspect of raising pups, usually the whole Pack looked after the pups. After a female gave birth to a litter, she nursed the pups until they were old enough to eat solid food, and then the pups were taken to the Inner Chamber, were they lived (both to learn to make their own way in the world and to grow distant from their mother) until they became yearlings, after which they went to live in the sections of Underground Den corresponding to the rank they were given. This way, there were no orphans among the Chezamon should the parents die on a Chamil or Galliac attack. However, the pups did know who their parents were, so that they could pay them a visit every once in a while, when they were older.

Kaya let out a yawn, and stretched his body backwards, "Well, I don't know you, guys, but I'm exhausted after all that work."

Rocket bristled his fur slightly and turned to look at his friend, "Work? All you did was to knead on the pillows all day!"

Shaoran muttered, "Don't remind me."

"I must go now, the Princess was confined to her chambers and I'm supposed to keep an eye on her," Ryuu stood and walked out of the Hunters' den, "Try not to sleep late, you're the ones supposed to go and fetch the delegates when they arrive."

Shaoran rested his head on the straw in frustration, "Great, just great!"

"What do you have against the other Tribes, Shaoran?" Kaya inquired, "I mean, it's not like they have done anything to you or something, did they?"

"That's not it…" Shaoran looked away, still resting his head on his straw bed, "I just don't want anything happen to our Tribe again… like solems ago, remember?"

"Come on, Shaoran!" Rocket exclaimed, "We weren't even born when it happened! How can you hold a grudge for something in which you were not involved in?!"

Jerome tried to change the conversation, "Hey, where's Toba, by the way?"

"He wanted to give a few 'final touches' to the chambers," Sorka rolled his eyes, "Seriously, why did we have to get him as a denmate?"

"I don't have anything against Toba, he's just… lively."

"Well, all of you heard Ryuu," Rocket spoke as he walked to his straw bed, "We should go to sleep. We'll be the ones going to pick the Tribes from the outskirts of the Forest of Life, remember? We better rest."

All of the other Hunters, and soon the lights were turned out, with every straw bed in the chamber, minus Toba's, occupied. Kaya, however, took a bit longer to sleep. Deep down, he had the feeling something was going to happen, he just didn't know what. He didn't know if it was good or bad, he just… knew it.

His Sixth sense was always wrong, Hukaro said… but was it?"


	12. The Arrival

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 12- The Arrival

"So, the Tribes arrive at Mist Forest today?" Kaz inquired as he took a sip from his milkshake.

"Yeah, and Kaya and the others are supposed to escort them to the Underground Den," Luna replied, "I can't wait to see their faces!"

"I just hope they won't be at each other's throats for these three seasons."

Peyton, Sarah and Tom paid them no heed, they were simply checking the scanners they had gotten in the Underground Den. Not all of the Chezamon they met had allowed them to take scans, but they had gotten a good number of location scanners, even though most Chezamon they scanned were Hunters or Healers.

"Take a look at this!" Peyton snickered as he showed his friends a scan of a bulky chezamon whose fur was of black, white and gray tones, "I managed to scan that Noble without him noticing. He's so cool, I can't wait to use him!"

Sarah smirked as she showed him a scan of Fen, "That's nothing, Princess Fen let me get a scan of her. She is much stronger than that pup."

Peyton looked down with a point, "Show-off."

"Just wait until you see this," Tom searched through his scanner and finally found the one he was looking for, "I managed to convince Hukaro to let me scan him, but I had to enlist a random Hunter's help for that."

Peyton and Sarah watched Hukaro's scan, and noticed he had very good stats.

"Guys!" Luna crossed her arms, "Instead of seeing who got the best Chezamon scan, we should go to the edge of the Forest of Life! I think it's already the time! Besides, we promised the other Creatures we would explain them some of the Chezamon customs while they got there!"

The trio sighed, remembering their promises as well. The group stood up from their table and headed towards the port court.

* * *

><p>Syena stared at the grassless terrain that extended seemingly endlessly from the edge of the Forests of life, seeing nothing more than rocks or pebbles. She was put in charge of the 'Tourism Operation', as the Hunters had dubbed it a few hours before, which made it wonder if the Hunters named all the missions after all. Unfortunately, the only one who seemed to be taking this assignment seriously was Rocket.<p>

Kaya was taking his third nap in the day, Jerome was pacing nervously next to him, Shaoran had climbed unto the tree and was staring back into the Forest of Life towards the location of Mist Forest and Toba was playing around with anything he found.

"I can't believe I had to bring this squad with me," Syena sighed in dismay, "I would have rather brought Xetas's squad."

Almost simultaneously, the Hunters twitched their ears and turned towards the lieutenant, "We heard that!" they said, offended.

"Sorry, guys, but you should be here helping me look for the Tribes' vehicles instead of losing your time!"

"Come on, don't be like that!" Kaya let out a big yawn, "If they wanted to come to Mist Forest, they have to ask for our help, anyway!"

"That's if we don't get lost on the way back" Jerome commented, "We barely got here!"

Syena narrowed her eyes, twitched her ears and looked around; she was hearing the faint sound of buzzing that disappeared within seconds. Recognizing the sound of the humans when they appeared in the middle of places, she looked towards the source and stared as Luna's pack walked towards them, this time without the need of constantly look around to look for Hunters in patrol or worse.

"So you guys actually managed to get here without our help after all?" Sarah inquired, to which Shaoran reacted by jumping back to the ground from his tree and landing right in front of her.

"It was harder than you said it would be," he muttered, "And we had to look for Chamils as we came."

"What's a Chamil?" Tom asked

"Believe me, you don't want to know," Kaya sighed as he looked away.

"I can't believe we're actually letting Creatures from other Tribes come into our territory," Rocket joined the conversation, "This is going to be recorded thoroughly in our history records."

"That's nothing compared to the Galliac attack last year," Jerome replied, "It was a complete massacre!"

Suddenly, Syena's pupils became slits and she looked into the distance, pointing her ears to the front and coiling her tail like a Siberian husky, but the humans decided not to bring it up, knowing the Chezamon would not know what they talked about, anyway. The Chezamon Hunters turned their heads towards the spot their lieutenant was looking at, and soon their slits became pupils as well when they spotted what she was looking at.

Four tiny clouds of dust were approaching the Forest of Life; although the humans saw only clouds, the Chezamon had keener senses and they spotted unfamiliar vehicles approaching swiftly. Almost immediately, the Chezamon took defensive positions, just in case those were hostile Creatures seeking to conquer their territory, but Luna stood between them and the outskirts before they could charge.

"No, no, no!" she yelled, "They're the delegates! Besides, if you try to attack Dread Treads, you're going to lose all of your teeth!"

Toba tilted his head, "Dread Tread? What's a Dread Tread?"

"You'll discover soon enough," Peyton grinned, "They're arriving."

The humans emerged from the Forest of Life to receive the Creatures, but the Chezamon were still wary and chose to stay hidden until they were sure the Creatures were unarmed.

When the Dread Treads finally arrived at their destination, they stopped in mid track, and the humans and Chezamon alike noticed they were marked with the respective four Tribes symbols. When the Creatures started to come out of the vehicles, the Hunters' fur bristled in curiosity, but Syena kept her calm; they watched as each Chaotic player went to their respective favorite Tribe group to explain them the course of action.

Bodhal was the first to emerge from the Overworlder's Dread Tread, carrying a whole bag filled with notebooks, pens and ink, probably for his 'research', and he was soon followed by Intress, Frafdo and Tangath Toborn. He immediately looked around, searching for the Sixth Tribe members.

"Where are they?!" he spoke rather loudly, "I want to see them! I need to ask them about the Roth shards!"

"Seriously, Bodhal," Frafdo sighed, "Can't you spend one single day without wanting to take notes?"

"Who would have though the Forest of Life has harbored a sixth Tribe for all of these solems," Tangath sighed as he looked into the depths of the Forest, "If only they had been present during the M'arrillian invasion, the outcome would have been turned for the best."

"They are waiting," Tom explained, "Remember, don't freak out if they approach to smell you, it's some king of…" Tom looked away in embarrassment, "… Greeting."

Luna had decided to wait until the delegates were ready, and decided to see which Creatures had come. Bodhal, Tangath, Intress and Frafdo had come in name of the Overworld. The Underworld had sent Takinom, Agitos Nivenna and Rothar, but she thought Rothar was a bad choice, he wasn't precisely the most patient Creature in Perim. The Mipedians who had come were Sobtjek, Ario, Vinta (Kaz had told her about their little adventure with the three Mipedians in Hunters' Perimeter), and Siado, but apparently there was one Mipedian who had yet to get down the Dread Tread. The Danians had chosen Odu-Bathax (he had probably come on his own account), Aimukk, Wamma (much to her surprise), Faash and Bierk. To think the Creatures would have to live there and not be at each other's throats.

"Alright," Odu-Bathax snapped as he pushed Sarah aside and looked around the area, "Where is the Chezamon who called me 'bug'?" the Mandiblors sighed in frustration at that comment.

Sarah joined them, "He's not here, he's in the Den, but do what you do, don't make him angry."

After a brief retelling of the Chezamon's rules, the four groups were led in front of Luna, and she gulped when she noticed most of the Creatures gave the other Tribes soft glares or 'I-so-want-to-kill-you-but-I-can't' looks. When all looks were on her, she looked back to the Forest of Life and called out for the Chezamon.

"Guys! They're all here! You can come!"

The four Tribes alike froze in place when they saw the wolf-like beasts emerging from the bushes, giving them cautious stares; their pupils were slits, their tails were held up high and their ears were pointing forward.

Nobody noticed, but Faash and Syena gave each other a glance; the Mandiblor and the Lieutenant thought the other seemed familiar or something, but they couldn't recall it. After all, they had never met until now.

"So…" Syena's voice spoke, "This is what the Tribes sent over here?"

* * *

><p>The Deep Mines had never been so quiet.<p>

After their defeat, the M'arrillians returned to their former home to seek refuge, the few M'arrillians that kept their sanity intact, at least. When their leader was presumingly killed, Phelphor took command of the M'arrillian army, but not even he was reckless enough to attempt to conquer Perim with the few resources his Tribe had left.

But the M'arrillian did not give up; in the ancient records left from solems ago, during the M'arrillians first invasion, he had come across a scroll which spoke of a Tribe of animal-like Creatures, with the instincts of a beast but the intelligence of a Creature. Apparently, they had fled during the first M'arrillian invasion for unknown causes, and they went into hiding permanently, losing touch with the outside world. They headed into the Forest of Life, then disappeared, never to be heard from again.

According to the scrolls, this Tribe were formidable enemies; they were fast and agile, like a feline, but strong and smart, like a wolf. Phelphor was surprised to learn that their Tribe wasn't able to brainwash this Tribe for some reason, but assumed they had left before the M'arrillians had a chance. After all, who was able to resist M'arrillian Mind Control?

He had already sent a scout to the Forest of Life to see if this Tribe was truly real; if it was, it could be another chance to conquer Perim, and if they refuse to form an alliance, well… the M'arrillians still had their methods.

* * *

><p>The Overworlders tried to accommodate in the chamber assigned to them, after being explained by the wolf-like Creatures which areas were free to roam and which were completely off-limits to them; it was rather awkward to sleep in the floor on a straw bed. Bodhal had been assaulting every Chezamon he came across about their culture, and over all, the Roth shards. However, the Hunters, as they were referred to by the higher-ranking Chezamon, were not allowed to disclose such information, and the Roth Shards were unfamiliar to them, apparently.<p>

"Seriously, Bodhal," Frafdo sighed as he took a peek into the green man's notebook, "Sketching is not your forte."

"Please, it's just an average drawing so that when we come back, Maxxor will be able to identify them," Bodhal spoke rather loudly with indignation, showing the bird-man his notebook and the drawing in it; a pathetic excuse for a chezamon sketch, in Frafdo's opinion.

"Why is their head on the wrong side of their body?" he inquired.

"That's its tail!"

"When did they say their leaders would meet us?" Intress asked s Tangath Toborn tried to fluff the pillow.

"In five moons, I think."

"If you ask me, I think these Creatures need to be a little more polite," Bodhal commented, going back to his notes, "I mean, they didn't even give us a single smile!"

"What were you expecting? It's the first time they have had outsiders in their homeland. They don't know how to treat us."

"As long as we are here, we must learn to tolerate the Underworlders at least until the chezamon make up their minds about the alliance." Tangath told the group.

"That's going to be hard, considering it's the Underworlders who are always looking for a fight." Intress replied, looking away.

* * *

><p>"Would you knock it off, Odu?" Bierk complained as the Battlemaster paced around the room, "Why don't you wait until tomorrow to look for that… Sorka guy?"<p>

"He called me a bug!" the Battlemaster replied in anger, "You expect me to simply sit down and do nothing?!"

"Don't take me bad, but I think you're taking it too seriously," Aimukk commented, just to receive an angry glare in return, "Forget about it."

""Would you guys argue in low voice? I'm trying to sleep," Wamma spoke from his straw bed, and covered his head with his cover, "And would you mind turning off the lights?"

Aimukk snacked his forehead in frustration, "Wamma, you slept all the way here and you're still tired?"

"Hey, sleeping can be tiring too."

Odu-Bathax wanted to launch a Rock Wave at Wamma so badly, but repressed for the sake of the alliance.

Faash said nothing to his Tribemates; he was already in bed, like Wamma, but unlike the obese Danian he had trouble sleeping. He couldn't stop thinking about that female, Syena; he felt a strange attraction to her, as if he had known her before, something he couldn't explain. On the way to the Underground Den, he had never taken his eyes off her, but would look away quickly when she looked back at him.

He couldn't believe he could actually mate with a member from another Tribe, but he didn't think he had that kind of attraction to her… did he?

* * *

><p>Sobtjek, unlike the rest of his comrades, had preferred to take a look around Underground Den before going to sleep; the terrifyingly eager Hunter, Toba, had offered to give him the 'Grand Tour', much to the other Chezamon's dismay. Despite the warning that once Toba started to talk he never shut up until he was actually done talking, the Mipedian thought it would be impolite to decline the offer.<p>

"This is where Ryuu keeps his samurai Clawder armor collection," Toba said while pointing to a chamber, which, unlike most of them, which had small leaf-woven curtains to act as doors reminiscent of those in a tent, had a solid wooden door, "But he doesn't like anyone getting in. Believe me, I learned it the hard way."

Sobtjek couldn't help but chuckle softly, "He starts to sound like Prince Mudeenu."

"Hey, speaking of which, that Mipedian with the red cloak… is he friendly? I mean, when you guys arrived he didn't look happy or excited, he was serious, and the only other Creature I have seen so serious is Torimaku when he is having a bad day."

"Ailav?" Sobtjek sighed, "No, it's just that he doesn't feel comfortable around other Tribes. Conjurors do not even fit in our Tribe, I'm afraid, and they have become very reclusive because of this. I'm surprised Prince Mudeenu told us to bring him."

"Well, maybe he is being wary. I mean, a lot of things can happen in Mist Forest, and you're lucky we didn't run into a Chamil or worse."

"Would you mind telling what a Chamil is? You have been repeating it all day, but we do not know what they are."

Toba shuddered, "They are the meanest, biggest, most dangerous predator you can imagine! Their tails are covered in spikes, their fangs are pretty sharp and they are not friendly! One his with their tails and you're done for!"

"So… You mean to say your Tribe has… predating problems?"

Toba nodded as he led the Mipedian back to the Mipedian's chambers, "Yeah, we don't like it but hey, it's home."

Sobtjek nodded, understanding, "Yes. Home."

* * *

><p>Takinom found it hard to accommodate on the straw bed; her wings got in the way no matter which position she took, and her fellow Underworlders had already fallen asleep not long ago; they were exhausted by all the walking they had to do. The humans had mentioned they had mounted Shaoran and Rocket on their way to Silver Cliffs, but the Chezamon refused to carry the outsiders on their backs; they were no 'skeletal steeds', they claimed.<p>

The only exception had been Agitos, who wasn't able to keep up with the group, and Jerome was forced to carry him. Takinom would never forget the face Agitos had when they helped him up the Chezamon's back, nor the look on Jerome's face when Agitos's spikes pinched against his skin.

Then she had learned there were winged Chezamon living on the cliffs nearby, and she wanted to go and meet them to see for herself, but the Overworlders Frafdo didn't want to stay behind and the two would have fought hadn't Kaz and Tom convinced them that the winged Chezamon, or Skyguard, were busy right then. However, they did meet the princess of the Tribe, a female pink-furred winged Chezamon named Fen, and she was surprisingly eager to meet them. In fact, so much that despite the Clawders' attempt at stopping her, she managed to 'learn the scent' of the newcomers before she was taken away.

After finally finding a comfortable position to sleep, Takinom closed her eyes and fell into slumber.

* * *

><p>"OW!" Jerome cried I pain as one of the Healers took the spines Agitos had left on his back off his skin, "Be careful!"<p>

"If you stopped moving, it wouldn't hurt so much!" the female Healer replied in annoyance as she removed yet another spike.

"I wouldn't move so much if you did your job better, you know!"

Offended, the Healer smacked the Hunter's back, where there were still a few spines stuck, making Jerome howl in pain.

"I have to admit, they're not all that bad," Kaya commented, trying not to snicker at Jerome's misery.

"They're not all that bad?!" Shaoran snapped, "They're outsiders! And they're living here!"

"Come on, Shaoran!" Hikari gave him a hard stare, "You have to give them a chance!"

"Why should I?"

Suddenly, a passing by Hunter took a peek into the room and gave the other Hunters a mocking stare, "Well, well, look who sat down on a hedgehog."

Jerome groaned in dismay, "Oh, great," he muttered, "Xetas."

Xetas, unlike the other Hunters, had a slightly bulkier build and his fur was much more glossy, making him think he was above the other Hunters in terms of beauty. His fur was a brilliant azure, almost like Rocket's luminous vivid azure fur, and he had curve-shaped markings colored of a pale cornflower blue, and pure white undercoat and paws. His eyes were a dark grayish violet, and they were giving the group of Hunters an mocking glance.

"Come on, don't tell me you are complaining just because of an Underworlder's spines. I thought you liked sitting on hedgehogs, this one was giant."

"Go annoy the Nobles, Xetas!" Rocket snarled, baring his teeth.

Xetas didn't bother to reply to that, he simply turned around with a grin in his face and walked away with his tail held up high.

"One of these days, I swear I'm going to feed him to a Chamil!" Shaoran muttered, "I can't stand him!"

Rocket sighed in frustration, "Welcome to my world, Shaoran."


	13. Ailav: Babysitter

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 13- Ailav: Babysitter.

This was not his day.

It was not that he didn't like Kilo, but the boy was not precisely the bravest Mipedian in Al Mipedim. Kilo was the equivalent of fourteen human years old, in terms of appearance he was like a combination of Vinta and Ghatup, with reddish brown scales and golden eyes with long red hair, but he was rather thin with blue eyes, and his skills as a warrior were not very honed, at all. In fact, some of the older Mipedians had nicknamed him 'chicken', the word they had heard from the humans, in honor of Kilo's coward nature.

Another thing about Kilo was his tendency to cause accidents he didn't mean too cause; like when he was put in charge of herding the Khozzors and ended up letting them get away. For this reason, most Mipedians considered Kilo a bad omen and avoided him when they could.

That was the reason Prince Mudeenu had sent him as part of the delegation team.

To make sure the boy would not end up destroying Underground Den by accident, Ailav had been tasked by Sobtjek to 'keep an eye on the boy', despite his objections.

"I can't believe they're making do this…" the Conjuror sighed in frustration as he and Kilo were led around the Underground Den by one of the Hunters who had brought them there.

"_Jerome… I think…_"

"The mess hall is this way," Jerome explained as the trio made their way through the caverns, "But I'm warning you, if you're a vegetarian, you're in for an unpleasant surprise."

Kilo gulped, "You mean there are no vegetarian dishes?"

Jerome shook his head, "We're carnivorous. The only plants we ever eat are medicinal plants when we are feeling sick and the boreal berry treats in winter."

"Just what I needed."

Ailav rolled his eyes as he and the other two Creatures kept walking, passing by other Hunters and Huntresses who would give the outsiders short glances before going back to their business. Before reaching the mess hall, Kilo's attention was attracted by a door- an actual door- blocking way into a room; his curiosity getting the better of him, Kilo made sure that Jerome and Ailav were distracted and quickly activated his invisibility.

Kilo walked back to the door, which was colored in gray and black and silver colors, like the Chezamon named Ryuu; the Mipedian assumed the room belonged to him. Kilo was doubting if he should take a peek inside the room or not, if Ryuu ever found out he would give a very bad impression of the Mipedians. On the other hand, he would make sure to leave no trace of his presence in the room, and what you don't see doesn't hurt you.

Kilo remained invisible, made sure there were no Hunters roaming around and slowly opened the door, trying to make the least noise possible. When he entered the room, he was surrounded by darkness. Apparently, the Captain of the Clawders either enjoyed being in the dark or he didn't want to spend money on illumination. Kilo got tired of not being able to see anything and ignited a fireball in his hand.

What he saw completely amazed him.

There was an entire collection of armor- Chezamon armor- accommodated in the room, with helmets, body armor, gauntlets and everything. The color and design varied, some looking like samurai armor, while others having a more medieval style. However, all of them had vibrant colors and golden marks. Apparently, Ryuu's hobby was to collect Clawder armor, which also explained why this door was 'off-limits' to the outsiders, as Ryuu put it when they first met.

Kilo walked closer to a crimson-colored armor with samurai design, and just as he was about to touch it…

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE?!"

Startled by the shout, Kilo jumped and the armor fell to the ground from its pedestal when his tail came into contact with it. He spun around rather quickly and saw Ailav, Jerome and another Hunter, this one with very light aquamarine fur, with white undercoat and pale, light grayish cyan markings around his eyes, paws, tail and on his snout.

Kilo smiled sheepishly as the trio set their fulminating eyes on him, but their expressions soon changed from anger to horror when the rest of the armors fell out of their pedestals, just like a domino path, the sound of metal clashing against the rock floor resounding in a high frequency.

Jerome and the unnamed Hunter had their mouths opened agape, staring at the once accommodated armor collection lying on the floor, now each set scrambled with another.

Ailav did a face palm, then rubbed his temples in frustration.

"Uh…" Kilo gulped, ".. Oops?"

* * *

><p>"This is bad! This is soo bad!" Jerome wailed as he paced around the room, or Ryuu's Armory room, as dubbed by the Chezamon, "We're dead meat!"<p>

"Calm down, would you?!" The aquamarine hunter, named Stringlyr, snapped as he attempted to accommodate the sets of armor correctly.

"How am I going to calm down?! You realize what when Ryuu finds out we just ruined his precious armor collection, he'll have us banished, don't you?!"

Kilo gulped for the second time, "Would he go that far?"

"You shut up!" Stringlyr snarled at the young Mipedian, "This is your fault, to start with!"

"Welcome to my world…" Ailav sighed in frustration

"I was just curious!" Kilo lifted his arms in defense

"Haven't you heard the saying 'Curiosity killed the pup?'" Stringlyr inquired, earning a confused stare from the Mipedians, "I'll take that as a no."

"What are we going to do?!" Jerome cried out in frustration for the third time.

"First of all," Stringlyr stated, "We need to keep Ryuu away. Second, we have to polish it and accommodate it the way it was. Third," the Hunter gulped, "We pray Ryuu doesn't notice."

"How are we supposed to keep Ryuu away?" Jerome inquired.

Stringlyr looked at the Mipedian Conjuror, "Perhaps he can help with that."

Ailav was taken by surprise, "Me?" he inquired, "How could I possible keep him away?"

"Well, you don't know this, but Ryuu has been awfully eager to talk with a Mipedian," Jerome explained, "He thinks your Tribe must be good into passing unseen, he had an incident when the purple-cloaked Mipedian disappeared out of sudden."

"You mean he became invisible?" Kilo inquired

"Invisible? Is that an ability or something?"

Kilo and Ailav didn't say anything for a while, but after a while, the Mipedian Conjuror sighed, "Alright, I'll see if I can keep him away from here."

"He should be in the Mess Hall," Jerome stated, "But be careful, he is not exactly very patient."

Kilo lifted up his arm eagerly, "What do I do?"

Ailav, Jerome and Stringlyr gave the young Mipedian an angry look, "Stay there!"

Getting the message, Kilo sat down on the stony cold floor, pouting as he watched Ailav leave and the two Chezamon Hunters attempting to accommodate the armor sets.

* * *

><p>Underground Den's Mess Hall was incredibly spacious and large, apparently as big as Queen's Gate back in Mount Pillar, as Wamma put it. It was not adorned at all, but on one side there was a stone table in which a buffet was waiting for any hungry Chezamon. Like most rooms, mostly torches and firefly lanterns illuminated it.<p>

But much to the other Creature's confusion, they soon learned that Chezamon did not use plates nor cutlery. They simply served themselves and devoured their meal in minutes (seconds in Kaya's case). Although Kaz, Tom, Peyton and Sarah were sitting on the ground (another rather awkward fact, the Chezamon used no chairs or tables either) with their respective Tribes, even they felt rather… out of place.

To enworse things, Chezamon gastronomy didn't give them appetite neither. It mostly consisted of various kinds of medium-termed meat (Drakdeer meat), various bulb-like pieces of Suffralo's breast, and a few berry-made desserts; mostly pies and cakes. Also, as an entry, there was a poached pill bug the size of a basketball ball on the middle of the table.

Most of the present Hunters and Healers were snickering at how the outsiders were struggling to even grab their food. Indeed, Bodhal in the Overworlders' group was trying to figure out how to eat the pill bug, which was still in its ball shape. Agitos and Takinom were disgusted of even touching the only half-cooked meat; the Mipedians were having trouble in cutting their meals, and Wamma was on the opposite side of the spectrum, must to his Tribemates' chagrin. He was not precisely picky with food, so he and Kaya, the only Chezamon he felt comfortable with, were having a 'who-can-eat-more' competition, and they were making a complete mess.

When Ailav walked into the Mess Hall, his red cloak flowing behind him as he walked swiftly, he scanned the area for Ryuu's gray and black fur. Unfortunately, since most Hunters had gray fur, it turned out to be harder than it appeared in the beginning. After five minutes, the Mipedian finally spotted Ryuu sitting with a group of Fangrors (something similar to the Generals), devouring a slice of berry pie hungrily.

"Hey, Ailav!" Luna's voice called out for the Conjuror, and when he turned to the direction it had came from he saw the human girl running close to him, "Where is Kilo? The others are worried that he might break something."

Ailav shuddered, "Believe me, you don't want to know. All I can tell you is that I must keep Ryuu away from the room where he keeps his armor collection-"

"What?!" Luna and Ailav were confused when a voice different than theirs snapped in horror, and soon Rocket was next to the duo with a shocked expression, "What did he do to Ryuu's armor?! If he finds out-!"

Ailav panicked and closed the Hunter's mouth shut, "I know that! Jerome told me! That's why I need to keep him away for as much as possible!"

"How are we supposed to do that?" Rocket exclaimed, in a lower tone this time, "When he's done eating he'll go to his Armory to make sure everything's fine with his collection! If there's a single scratch, well…" Rocket gulped nervously, "… You'll see."

"I think I have an idea…" Luna whispered, looking towards the Danians' group as Kaya and Wamma continued with their little contest, "But I need to ask a Danian for help."

"Forget it! No way I'm working with a bug!" Ailav hissed, to which Rocket snarled.

"I don't think you have much choice if you want to keep Ryuu away from the armory!"

"Can you at least tell me why must it be a Danian?"

A cry of triumph called the trio, and maybe the entire room's, attention; Kaya was hopping happily around, while Wamma was clutching his stomach with a sick expression, earning snickers from Bierk and Aimukk. Even Odu-Bathax couldn't but chuckle evilly as ne enjoyed Wamma's misery.

"Believe me, one of those Danians knows how to keep Creatures away from a place," Luna explained, turning to look at Ailav again, "And who knows? Perhaps at the end of the day you'll have a new friend."

"Friend? A Danian? Never!" Ailav snapped as he turned around, billowing his cloak behind him, and walked out of the Mess Hall. Rocket gave Luna a glance.

"I'll go get him, you get Sarah and the Danian you just mentioned."

The human sighed, "It's not that hard to convince Sarah to help. The problem will be to keep the Mipedian and the Danian from each other's throats."

* * *

><p>Aimukk was confused as to why Sarah and Luna were dragging him out of the Mess Hall, not long after Kaya defeated Wamma in the eating contest. They said it was important, so he assumed one of the Chezamon wanted to see him. However, when they led him to a tunnel intersection where the Mipedian Ailav was waiting in irritation, his blood started to boil.<p>

"What's he doing here?" He asked coldly, giving the Mipedian an aggressive look.

Ailav replied with a snarl of his own, "Look, you don't like me, and let's get it clear that I do _not_ like you, but this is urgent!"

Rocket called their attention, "Remember the place where I told you Ryuu kept his Clawder Armor collection?" Aimukk nodded, "Well, apparently Kilo snuck in there and knocked all of the armor sets down. Unless you want Ryuu to kill you in your sleep, we need to keep him away from there while Stringlyr and Jerome fix it."

Aimukk crossed his arms, "And I have to help the Mipedians' because…?"

When Sarah gave the Danian a look that meant' If you don't, you'll regret it', as Wamma once explained to him, Aimukk felt a shiver run down his spine, knowing full well Sarah's temper (having been the cause of it a few times), finally let out a sigh of defeat.

"Fine! I'll see what I can do!"

"Speaking of which," Ailav finally spoke, "Why does Luna say you're good keeping Creatures away from places?"

"Well, when you share nest with Wamma, you must learn how to."

"Speak of the devil," Sarah muttered, "There's Ryuu."

The captain of the Clawders, having done eating, was heading for his private armory like he did all evenings, to take a look at his armor collection before resuming his duties, but he was startled when a Mipedian and a Danian stood in his way.

"Excuse me, Ryuu," Ailav spoke nervously as the Chezamon's crimson eyes set on him, "Sorry to bother you, but would you mind giving us a tour around here?"

The Mipedian shivered when Ryuu narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "Ask one of the Hunters, I'm busy right now."

Before he could walk away, however, Aimukk blocked his way with one of his legs, "Usually, we wouldn't mind asking one of the Hunters, but…" he started sweating nervously, "Well, we… thought you would be much better in giving us a tour than the Hunters around here. I mean, you are so much disciplined and dedicated that they are.

"Hey!" Rocket snapped, offended, before Sarah elbowed him hard in the ribs.

Ryuu seemed to be flattered by their words, but he still was suspecting of those two. They were sounding like Hunters who were trying to cover something they had done wrong, However, what could two outsiders be hiding from him?

Rocket, sensing Ryuu was still doubting, decided to lend the two a paw, "Come on, you two! I told you he would say no, so why don't you go ask Hukaro instead?"

Aimukk and Ailav looked at him like he was crazy, but Sarah and Luna noticed a fumed look on Ryuu's face; apparently, Rocket was spiking Ryuu's ego.

"I mean, Hukaro once said Ryuu can't find his way through the Underground Den without his Clawders." Rocket grinned inwardly when Ryuu's fur started to bristle in anger.

"He did?!" he hissed ,"Well, I'll show him to watch his tongue when I'm done with these two!" saying this, he started pushing Ailav and Aimukk away with his head, "Come on, you two! There's so much you still haven't seen!"

Despite feeling awkward at being pushed around by a… wolf-like Creature… Aimukk and Ailav simply gave each other shrugs as they were led away.

At least it would keep him away from the armory for a while.

* * *

><p>Ginga's moon was already high in the sky, illuminating Mist Forest, and all of Perim. Most of the Chezamon where already in the Underground Den, safe from the Night Seekers and the Chamils, but there were still a few Hunters patrolling their designated areas. These Hunters were especially trained to survive in Mist Forest at night, a feat not even the Clawders were capable of. Predation was much more abundant at night, despite the Chezamon's night vision, due to the fact that the creatures that predated on them were nocturnal. In fact, due to this, most of the Night Hunters had dark-colored fur and muted tones to blend in with the darkness, and lacked any kind of markings.<p>

One of the places guarded by the Night Hunters was an abandoned castle ruin at the feet of the mountain; according to legend, a twenty solems ago it was inhabited by another, mysterious branch of the Chezamon species but they vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.

Humans would confuse it for an abandoned medieval castle with a touch of a Japanese palace, but the Chezamon simply referred to it as 'Ghost Castle', and often used it to tell spooky storied to the pups of the horrors that would come to them should they venture into the castle at night. None of the Night Hunters understood why they were ordered to guard that castle at all, if it was long abandoned, and there was nothing of value in there. However, they knew their place, and their complaints would fall on deaf ears, anyway.

"Seriously," one of the Night Hunters, a dark blue violet male with Persian blue eyes clad in black medieval-like armor muttered under his breath to his companion, "Why are the Alphas so insistent in guarding this place? The only thing that needs guarding here is the Night Hunters who fall asleep on the job."

His companion, a Night Hunter with dark artic blue fur and grayish amber eyes rolled his eyes, "Quit it, Mahoga! You know the commander doesn't like it when we complain!"

Mahoga simply snapped, "How can I help it? I would rather be at the Den drinking some hot cocoa, but no! I'm stuck here! Besides, I thought you had a litter to look after, Echo!"

"Well, now that you mention it, I've been wanting to visit my mate for a while now, but what can I do?"

Suddenly, the pair twitched their ears to a sound, a sound they had never heard before; it sounded like the cry of echolocation of the Night Seekers combined with a howl, but they weren't so sure.

"What was that?" Echo left his post and started to walk around the abandoned halls of the castle, followed by the reluctant Mahoga.

"I hope it's not a Night Seeker," said Mahoga, swallowing the lump in his throat, "I don't want to deal with one again."

"It can't be a Night Seeker, if it wasn't we wouldn't have heard its cry."

"Why don't you tell that to Nightflight?"

The Night Hunters shivered when the sound of flapping wings broke the silence, and the cry became louder. They could feel something moving around them, but even with their night vision, they couldn't see its shape. The sound apparently came from everywhere; from the ceiling, the halls, the balcony, like an illusion.

"Who goes there?" Mahoga finally gathered the courage to speak, but his voice was trembling with fear, "Show yourself!"

"Well, well, well…" a voice which sounded like oil running through a pipe, but with a deepness that made the Night Hunters' hearts skip a beat, "Looks like things haven't changed since I was gone… Baojia still thinks that sending Hunters here will delay the inevitable."

This time it was Echo who spoke, "Show yourself! You've crossed into Chezamon territory and if you don't leave right now, we'll make you leave!"

"Such brave words to cover up your fear, huh?" the voice spoke once again, "You may try and act fearless, but I can sense your fear. It's… delicious," saying this, the voice snickered evilly, sending even more shivers down their spines.

"Final warning!" Mahoga snapped, "Leave now or come out of hiding and fight, you coward!"

…

"As you wish," the two Night Hunters felt the ground tremble for a fraction of second, and they heard heavy footsteps coming towards them, "I'd hoped we could come to an agreement, but I see you are not worth it. Besides, I'm hungry…"

Echo and Mahoga stared up at the owner of the voice in pure terror as giant batwings flared up and a pair of brilliant arctic blue eyes glared down at them, and the last thing they saw that night was a flash of teeth and red fur…

* * *

><p>Ailav and Aimukk had not had a precisely good time.<p>

While eager to explore the Underground Den completely, they had not been told that Ryuu was annoyingly explicit; he would often give long explanations, which made the listeners fall asleep without him noticing. Besides, it was not like there were not areas they hadn't already seen. But it was better than seeing Ryuu's reaction if he ever found out about his armor collection.

Finally, after a long, exhausting tour around the entire Den, the trio was finally passing around Ryuu's armory, making a bell ring in the Chezamon's mind.

"Well, gentlemen, it was a pleasure sticking out with you," said Ryuu, walking towards the door, "But I must check if everything's alright in there."

Immediately, Ailav and Aimukk blocked his path to prevent him from entering the room.

"Come on, Ryuu!" the Danian spoke nervously, "Don't be a party pooper! I mean, you look so much relaxed now!" he felt awkward using those words.

Ryuu stared at him like he was mad, "… Did you eat a rotten pill bug by accident?"

Before Ailav could say something, the door to Ryuu's armory opened and Stringlyr peeked his head out, noticing the trio, "Hey, Ryuu," he said calmly, "Everything's fine here, so don't worry."

"As if," Ryuu narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "Every time you say that, it means you did something to my armor collection! Now step out of the way!"

The gray and black Clawder pushed Stringlyr aside and looked into the room, expecting to see his armor collection a complete mess, lying on the ground, but what he saw caught him by surprise. Jerome and the young Mipedian named Kilo were inside, breaking his rule of 'no one can go into the Armory but me', but he noticed that his armor collection was intact. All of the sets were in place, properly accommodated, and with not a single scratch on them.

Aimukk and Ailav were frozen in place as well, but not because of the same reason as Ryuu not at all; they were astonished that they had left everything the way it was before Kilo screwed it up. Inwardly, they had assumed that the armor would have at least a few dents, but they didn't.

Whatever they did, they did it perfectly.

"See?" Stringlyr spoke, "Everything's fine. You have nothing to worry about."

Ryuu was speechless, "… Well, I must say… I'm impressed you didn't touch my armor collection, Stringlyr. I mean, you did it once, remember?"

Kilo sighed in relief, "Well, if we're all done here, how about we go to sleep? I'm exhausted."

However, before he could say anything else, Kilo's tail knocked against the nearest armor set, and almost instantly it fell out of place, clashing against the floor; but it didn't end there. Before they all knew it, the same event from hours ago repeated as all of Ryuu's precious armor collection clashed against the ground, the metal echoing through the caverns. Kilo gulped in horror, not believing he had done it again.

All the Creatures in the room were agape in shock for different reasons.

Ryuu couldn't believe that one single Mipedian, and so young, could destroy all of his armor collection.

Stringlyr and Jerome were dismayed, since now Ryuu would surely put the blame on them, and they would get the punishment even though they had nothing to do with it.

Ailav and Aimukk were frustrated, since all of the 'tour' fiasco had been for nothing. They gave each other a glance of dismay and frustration.

At least they _had_ something in common, after all.


	14. Intress: Bath

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 14- Intress: Bath

It was one of those times again.

The representatives soon found that chezamon were all different, all varying. Their likes, dislikes, fault, flaws, peeves, fears and objects of affection changed from Chezamon to Chezamon, as different as their fur color. One could love something as much as another loathed it. One could be friendly while another could be antisocial, except in missions. One could be humble and another could be fiery and stubborn. One could be possessive of his packmates and another could hardly care less if his packmates were devoured by Galliacs.

One could have a taste for Drakdeer meat while another could prefer the sweet flavor of Boreal Berry treats. Some preferred specific colors to others. One might love to spend time with pups and another might want to stay away from them as much as possible. One could see the delegates as outsiders and intruders while another saw this occasion as a chance to learn from the other Tribes.

Baths- yes, the Chezamon _did_ take baths- were no different. All Chezamon; Hunters, Healers, Nobles, Fangrors and Pups alike needed them at least once every few months to clear out parasites, dust and dirt they may have gained while out in the forest. The Underground Spring Chamber, an underground cave with five or six medium-sized pools of warm, clear water, was rented out to any Chezamon of any rank who needed a bath, as it was the only water guaranteed to have warm enough temperatures for them not to catch a cold, not to mention it was completely safe from predators.

And like everything, the opinion on the inevitable bath-taking process varied from Chezamon to Chezamon. Most of the Chezamon, mostly those with the Earth or Wind element, tolerated baths. They would enter the water and relax, pouring water over their heads and ran their claws through their fur to clean them. Then they would climb out and shake themselves all over until their fur was almost dry, after which all they had to do was wait until they were completely dry.

A good few Hunters, those with the Water element, absolutely _loved_ baths, and when they knew it was their bath time they were the first in line for occupying the limited number of springs. They just loved wallowing in warm water. They would play and splash around, making a terrible mess, dipping their heads in and out and making sure their entire body was soaked. Sometimes, they didn't realize their time had run out until they were shooed by the next Hunter in line, annoyed by the increasingly large and deep puddle the enthusiastic Hunter had made on the clean chamber floor.

Of course, on the opposite end of the spectrum, there were the Chezamon, mostly with the Fire element, that absolutely hated baths. They hated the feeling of water clogging their skin and drenching their fur, making it sticky and heavy ad unresponsive. They hated the freezing cold when they had to step out of the bath. They hated the water in general. They would fight the whole way to the bathroom, kicking and snarling and cursing and trying to run away, as their packmates would often have to drag them to the springs. Then they would hunch over miserably, animosity and loathing boiling in every last recess their minds as water took its toll on them.

Unfortunately for Rocket and the others, Kaya and Shaoran were of the latter.

But Kaya was the worst.

At the mere sliver of a thought of a _mention_ of a _bath_, he was off, usually all day while hiding from his packmates and other Hunters they asked for help. On the rare and lucky occasion Rocket, Jerome, Shaoran and Toba managed to trick Kaya and tie his legs so he wouldn't run away, the red Chezamon fought as hard as he could to get away from the dreaded water. And if his packmates actually managed to get him into the Spring Chamber and into the water, Kaya did not give up; he splashed and pleaded his packmates to let him out of the pool and trying to get away. If Kaya had his way, he would never get a bath.

Unfortunately for Intress, she was caught up in the whole mess.

The red furred Chezamon had dashed by her, almost knocking her over, but he didn't care right then. He just had to get away.

"Kaya!" Rocket called out for his packmate, "Get back here!"

"No use, he's gone," Shaoran spoke, rubbing his head.

Intress couldn't understand, "Excuse me, is something wrong?"

Jerome was crawling out of their den, panting in exhaustion, "Trying to get Kaya to get a bath, that's wrong!" he whined, "Boy, when he wants to get way from it he has a damn strength that could probably overpower a Galliac!"

"A bath?"

"A long story."

Intress thought for a moment. Maybe she could help them with all of this bath issue and they would think highly of Overworlders, maybe even kiss, or lick, the ground in which they stepped on. Or at least convince them that the Overworld was the best choice of a treaty.

* * *

><p>Siado made his way through the marketplace at the bottom of the small underground canyon, watching as the shopkeepers sold strange plants and items to passing by civilians. Most of these items were foreign, and he did not know what they were used for, but he did not wish to bother asking silly questions. He found it surprisingly easy to find his way through Underground Den, despite practically being an underground labyrinth.<p>

A flash of red ran into him and the pair of Creatures rolled on the ground until they crashed against one of the tents, making most of the desserts in the shelves fall to the ground.

"Why don't you look where you are going?!" Siado snarled at the attacker, wiping some of the cupcakes and cakes' soft colored icings off his scales.

Kaya quickly shook the frosting off his fur, unknowingly shaking it into Siado once more, "Sorry, but it's an emergency! The others want to give me a bath and I don't want to take a bath!"

"Well, could you at least make sure you don't run into other Creatures?! I'm all stained with…" the Mipedian took a look at the frosting, colored with soft light blue, lilac and cake pink, "What were these anyway?"

"KAYA!"

The red Chezamon jumped like a cat, and soon he was in a submissive position: tail between his legs, ears flat against his skull and crouched to the ground, as if he was going to be killed.

Siado soon realized the cause of it. A Chezamon, apparently older than Kaya, was glaring down at him with moderate pistachio eyes. His fur was colored a light brilliant amber, with cake amber underbelly, jaws and paws. Brilliant Orange spots were spread across all of his back and tail, with a tinge in his ears.

"Mr. Frosice…" Kaya gulped. "Good morning… How are the twins?"

"How many times must we go through this?!" the Hunter hissed, "Can't you spend one day without crashing into my shop like this?!"

"It was an accident, I swear!"

"Oh, yeah! Like all the other twenty eighth times you said it was an accident."

Siado decided to lend the red-furred Hunter a paw, "Excuse me, Mr.… Frosice. He is telling the truth, he actually _ran_ into me and the both of us crashed in you selves." The Mipedian stood up, "I offer you my most sincere apologies."

"You don't have to worry, Mipedian," Frosice replied, "You were just a victim as well."

Before Kaya could protest, another Chezamon, this time a female of a very light cerulean color and light crimson stripes running down her back, walked into the tent, "Frosice, dear, what was that…" her brilliant rose eyes widened, "What happened here?"

Frosice pointed at Kaya with a paw, and the female understood.

"Let me explain," Siado spoke again, "Kaya said something about a bath or something and he was looking for somewhere to hide."

Kaya smacked his forehead with his paw and his ears flattened once more. Frosice and the female exchanged looks, and a grin was drawn on their faces. The female turned to look at the Mipedian.

"Mipedian, would you mind lending us a paw?"

"Paw…?" Siado hesitated, but he guessed they said 'paw' instead of 'hand' or 'claw' because they themselves had never seen hands before. But it was the least he could do after ruining their wares.

"What do you want me to do?"

* * *

><p>Rocket grumbled something about 'having to look for Kaya as if he was a pup' as he and Intress reunited with the other Hunters in front of the Springs. There was already a line of Hunters, Healers and other low or middle-ranked Chezamon intertwined amongst each other, waiting for their turn. All males. Intress had been explained that females bathed in a different cave to avoid 'misunderstandings'. Luckily, they had made a reservation for one of the Springs three days ago without telling Kaya, so there was one single free spring reserved for Kaya.<p>

"Any luck?" Jerome inquired, panting.

"Nope, but the pups gave me treats for free!" Toba cheerfully declared as he took yet another sweet berry into his mouth, "You should try some!"

"Hey, you four!" the male in charge of the Springs, a Hunter with light cornflower blue (similar to Xetas's) fur, light Persian bluish gray underbelly an face and moderate blue markings shaped like water snapped, "Is Kaya coming or not? There are others who want to take a bath much more than he does!"

"Wait a second, Gazette!" Shaoran growled, "Stop rushing us? When you spend half an hour in the bathroom do I rush you?"

Gazette crossed his front legs and gave Shaoran an annoyed look. "Yes, you do."

The rest of the Hunters snickered.

"Are you looking for someone?"

The Hunters quickly twisted their heads around to see who had spoken.

What they saw nearly sent them into uncontrollable laughter.

Frosice and his mate, Buttercup, along with the Mipedian named Siado, were dragging Kaya to them; the red Hunter had his four legs tied up by a rope, but that was not what made most of the Chezamon waiting for their turn laugh. Kaya's fur was almost completely stained and dirtied with cake icing, there was not a single trace of clean fur on the Chezamon's body.

"Please, Mr. Frosice!" Kaya was pleading desperately, "I'll make it up to you, but don't give me to them!"

"That's what you said last time," Buttercup snarled, before turning to look at the group, "I believe you were looking for him."

"Yes, we were!" Rocket walked closer to the pair, "Thank you very much!"

Frosice huffed, "No problem. Now, if you'll excuse us, Buttercup and I must restore all the desserts Kaya ruined."

Intress watched as Frosice and Buttercup started walking away; the female turned to look at Siado, "Mipedian, since you were to blame for that little accident as well, the least you could do is to help us with this."

Siado nodded and walked after the pair.

Kaya gulped when his packmates set their eyes on him, "Can we talk this over?"

"No!" Rocket and Shaoran took a hold of the rope tying Kaya's legs together and started dragging the overweight Hunter to the spring cave, tainting the floor with frosting, soon joined by Jerome and Intress. Toba simply stared at them curiously.

There were already one, two or three Hunters bathing inside each of the springs, except the one reserved for Kaya. The latter had apparently accepted the fact he was going to get a bath and could no nothing about it, for he remained silent and calm all the way to the pool.

"Alright, Kaya," Jerome said, "We're going to cut those ropes, and you're going to step into the water, okay?"

Shaoran and Toba nibbled on the ropes, and Kaya's ears straightened, his pupils went to slits. Perhaps he could still pull out a getaway after all.

When he felt his legs loose, he immediately jumped to his feet and headed straight for the door…

… Unfortunately, Intress had thought he would attempt to escape one more time, and with a Power Pulse, the Kaya was back on the ground, stunned by the attack.

"Didn't see that coming," Shaoran said, staring at the stunned Hunter, then glanced at Intress, "Thanks for that. The method was quite unorthodox, but at least you prevented him from escaping."

Intress nodded, grinning, "No problem."

"Kaya!" Rocket snapped, baring his teeth as he started pushing Kaya towards the pool, "Must we go through this everytime you have to take a bath?!" his own fur was staining with the cake frosting, but he didn't mind right then.

"I hate water, and you know it!" Kaya snapped right back, his fur slicking down with indignation, fury and dread.

"I do too, but I don't make quite a scandal about it!" Shaoran replied.

The group had caught the attention of all the Hunters in the spring, and the ones waiting for their turn, Gazette included; they stared amusingly as Rocket, Shaoran and Jerome attempted to push Kaya into the pool of warm water. However, they didn't notice the puddle of water on the edge of the pool, and as they did the final attempt to push the red-furred Chezamon into the poo, they slipped.

Kaya flailed his front paws, as if trying to hover back into dry soil.

Shaoran realized what was going on, and closed his eyes shut.

Rocket and Jerome let out a scream.

Toba started to laugh.

_SPLASH._

* * *

><p>A slim figure made its way through Mist Forest, looking for somewhere to hide. Its aqua green scales gleamed dimly in the few sunlight rays filtering through the trees. It's eel-like head and face were twisted into an expression of terror, and it's lime green fins were filled with scratches. There were cuts and teeth marks all along its body, bleeding ever so slightly.<p>

A M'arrillian Eel Soldier.

When he had been sent to explore this uncharted territory, they had not informed him the environment was so hostile. It seemed that every plant and creature in that forest wanted to kill him, but turning back was not an option. He was supposed to search for this sixth Tribe and brainwash a few Creatures to the M'arrillians' side, but this forest was very big, and he thought he was lost.

To enworse things, the predators he had encountered these days were not precisely helping. His Mind Control didn't work on any of these animals, and he had to run away everytime one of these creatures went after him.

Finally spotting somewhere to rest, the Eel-like M'arrillian flew towards a nearby cavern, resting on the rocky ground, breathing heavily and looking back at his wounds. He had come unprepared and now was paying the price. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to sleep a little to recover from his injuries, just enough so that he could hold his own against the sixth Tribe.

Closing his eyes, the M'arrillian was soon fast asleep.

* * *

><p>"ACHOO!" Rocket sneezed, drying the dripping mucus from his nostrils.<p>

After the five of them fell into the pool and had to bath Kaya against his will, the Chezamon climbed out of the pool and shook the water off their fur. Unfortunately, Rocket had rushed out of the cave before his fur was completely dry, and as a result, he caught the Mist Flu.

"Sorry for getting you sick, Rocket," Kaya gave the blue-furred Hunter an apologetic glance.

"Don't talk to me!" Rocket snapped, looking away in annoyance.

"You can't blame me at all! You ran out of the cave before you were dry!"

"Even if that was an excuse, and it isn't, if you hadn't been so stubborn at ba-ah-ah ACHOO!" Rocket gave out another sneeze, "None of this would have ever happened!"

Kaya sighed frustrated.

"Rocket! Kaya!"

The two Hunters reacted to Torimaku's voice by straightening their ears and slitting their pupils. The High Muge of the Forest stepped into the den, and noticed Rocket's condition almost immediately.

"What is it, Torima-ah-ACHOO!" Rocket growled in frustration.

"I'm here to give you a mission," Torimaku simply said, "There have been sightings of a strange Creature roaming around Mist Forest. It's not a Chamil, nor a Drakdeer, nor a Galliac, it isn't like anything we have ever seen." When Rocket sneezed for the fiftieth time that day, Torimaku gave him a serene glance, "Rocket, you won't go with your current condition. Go see Sakura, she'll give you a herb tea for those sneezes."

Rocket nodded and silently walked out of the den, letting out uncontrollable sneezes. Kaya sensed it was not only about Rocket's condition.

"Xetas's pack is coming too, aren't they?" he inquired

Torimaku nodded, "Yes. The Alphas thought that, apart from Rocket's Mist Flu, his conflicts with Xetas would get in the way if they were put in the same team."

"Don't remind me…" Kaya growled, "You know, Rocket's not the only one who had a grudge against Xetas."

"That's the reason the Alphas decided to send both you and Xetas's pack. They thought it would be a perfect chance for your packs to reach a truce."

"As if. When do we part, by the way?"

"In five minutes."

"WHAT?!"

Torimaku suppressed a giggle at Kaya's reaction, "It's just that a few of the representatives from the other Tribes wanted to accompany your squads in order to familiarize with Mist Forest."

"Great, just what we needed." Kaya muttered under his breath, "Five Tribes going out for a walk in Mist Forest? It's going to be a looong day."

"There's also another detail I almost forgot to tell you," Torimaku spoke once more, this time grinning at him, "Princess Fen said she was going to stay in her chambers all day, so the Alphas have also assigned Ryuu to take a pack of Clawders and accompany you personally in order to assure the representatives' safety."

Kaya nearly choked on the sweet berries he was eating.


	15. Predation

Chaotic: Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 15- Predation

The smell of cinnamon incense was strong enough for Rocket's nose to sniff it, but not enough to unplug his nose. Sakura's chamber was filled with shelves, occupied by healing herbs, plants and colorful flowers, each meant for a different purpose. Some were boiled to prepare tea or soup for respiratory diseases, like Mist Flu, others were smashed into powder and mixed with other types of plants to treat digestive ailments, or a few of the flowers' petals were added to a strong tea in order to help an insomniac Hunter to rest his eyes and body.

If there was a Healer who knew almost every type of sicknesses and the plants used for each, it was Sakura. Unlike the most Healers, who after passing the basic Healing classes had to chose an specialty –diseases, broken bones, articulations out of place or digestive problems- she opted to study every type of diseases and herbs. Her teachers soon discovered her exceptional memory, and she was taught advanced healing techniques at an early age. However, this also made her very reclusive, and when she had to choose between hanging out with packmates and reading whatever she could about plants, she preferred reading.

But that was not the 'creepy thing', as a few of the Nobles put it, of her.

The creepy thing about her was the fact that her pupils were colored of the palest white, contrasting with her pale lime green eye. This made the rest of the Pack believe Sakura was blind, but they were proven wrong when she proved to have her eyesight as sharp as any Hunter.

"Sakura?" Rocket called out for the Healer, his voice raspy from all the coughing, "Are you he-ah-ACHOO!"

As soon as he was done talking, a female stepped out from a dark room on the side of the chamber, the velvet green curtain hiding the extra room from the visitors' eyesight. Sakura's fur was a pale, light arctic bluish gray which was believed to glow in the dark due to the contrasting brown color of all the places inside Underground Den had. Though barely noticeable at all, her underbelly was dimly a softer tone than the rest of her body. Rocket trembled when Sakura set her ash-white pupils on him.

"Judging by those sneezes, you must have the Mist Flu, am I right?" she asked

Rocket nodded, "Yeah, is it that obvio-ah-ah-ACHOO!"

Sakura had taken a few steps back in order to avoid Rocket's flying mucus coming straight towards her fur, "You tried to give Kaya a bath and you were the one who ended up bathing, right?"

"More or less," Rocket sniffed, "We managed to get Kaya into the spring, but he kind of didn't want to bath by himself."

Sakura giggled, "Well, don't worry. I'll give you something that will get rid of those annoying sneezes." The Healer headed towards a plain, bare table with a mortar and pestle, and a few herbs there and there.

"So, I heard you were not allowed to go on a search mission," Sakura commented as she started grabbing specific plants on the table.

"Yeah, Torimaku said my Mist Cold would get in the wa-ah-ah-ACHOO!" Rocket bared his teeth in frustration, "Damn it!"

"Haven't you heard, Rocket? That's only one of the reasons."

Rocket's ears straightened, "What? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Didn't they tell you?" Sakura arched an eyebrow as she poured the contents from the mortar into a pot, "The other reason you were not included in the mission was because Xetas's pack was also assigned the same mission."

"What?!" Rocket managed to contain a sneeze to finish that single world. "I can't believe it! Couldn't they have told me directly? ACHOO!"

"Here you go." Sakura pouted a bit of the soup into a wooden bowl and handed it to Rocket. "Drink it while it's hot or it won't work. It will take about an hour for it to take effect."

Sniffing one more time, Rocket took a slurp from the bowl; his tongue felt as if he had just licked alight wood, but if it would stop his damn, annoying sneezes he didn't mind; this didn't mean he didn't stick out his tongue in order to try and diminish the heat a bit.

"Puppy." Sakura teasingly said before turning and going back to her dark room, probably to fetch something for his newly-burnt tongue.

Sometimes, her sense of humor was not pleasant in the least.

"Bodhal's journal, entry number ten. Right now we're in the middle of Mist Forest, in search of an intruder not part of the delegation, not part of the wildlife here."

Xetas growled, his fur bristling. "Xetas's journal entry one, if Bodhal doesn't shut his trap I will dig a hole into the earth and put him in it!"

"Quit it, Xetas!" Kaya snapped. "They're guests, remember?"

"It's not my fault he won't stop blabbering!"

"Xetas, please stop." A female Hunter with minty fur whispered softly. "You don't want to incommode our guests, do you?"

The blue Hunter muttered under his breath, but finally turned to meet her pinkish red eyes. "Only because you ask me, Rosaryn."

Two members of each Tribe delegation had accompanied the Hunters: Tangath Toborn, Bodhal, Agitos, Takinom, Sobtjek, Ailav, Faash and Bierk. The others were asked to stay at the den, for Mist Forest could be very dangerous to outsiders, and the Alphas said they would not claim responsibility if something happened to them. Six Clawders formed a protective circle around them, with Ryuu walking a few steps away. Only Kaya, Jerome, Shaoran and Toba were able to go, due to Rocket's condition (and mutual grudge with Xetas) and Hikari was assigned to pupsit thee month olds.

Xetas's pack consisted of five members, including Xetas himself. Rosaryn was the only female, and the Healer of the pack. The third member was a moderate orange male with light brownish gray underbelly, black fingers and back named Tunobar. The fourth, Tolash, had pure white fur with patches of brilliant red looking like big, berry sauce stains on his back, legs and tail, brilliant gold ears and a patch of dark gamboge around one of his pale light grayish azure eyes. The fifth and last male, whose name was Barlow, had pale light grayish malachite green fur with contrasting moderate phthalo blue paws and soft brown eyes.

The two packs were not exactly enemies, but they weren't exactly close friends.

"ARGH!" Agitos growled as he felt his feet dig into another muddy pool, and he angrily shook the dirt of his talon, not noticing some of the dirt had sprinkled into Sobtjek's cloak. "Damn it! What's with the mud here?!"

Although angry at his cloak being dirtied with mud, Sobtjek said nothing for now; of all the Mipedians, he was the one with the most self-control regarding the other Tribes.

Faash had other ideas.

"What's wrong, Underworlder? Can't you stand a little dirt?" The Danian muttered tauntingly, hoping to spike Agitos's temper.

Agitos seemed to realize, because he simply said. "Not at all. If only I could say the same about you. I saw how you were acting over a little mud in your thorax a little while ago."

"If I had known they would be arguing for a little mud puddle, I would have rather stayed back at the Den and listen to Hukaro's big mouth." Ryuu muttered under his breath, making the Clawders snicker silently so not to receive any reprimands from their captain.

"So, how did this outsider look like?" Bierk asked Xetas, trying to change the topic and distract Faash from his little 'quarrel' with Agitos.

"According to Swiftus, he looked like a giant ell coming from the deeps of Mist Lake." Barlow replied; he had the habit of answering questions meant for someone else, much to his packmates' annoyance. "Well, we have never seen an eel in Mist Lake, so I'm not sure what she meant."

"There are no eels in Mist Lake, genius." Shaoran replied sharply. "Ells are saltwater creatures, they can't survive in fresh water."

"Whoever that Creature is, you can count on us to drive it away." Tangath Toborn spoke up.

"Yeah, well-" Suddenly, Kaya's ears perked up and his pupils became slits. The delegation team was startled for the slightest moment when soon the others did the same, looking around in alarm like deer looking for a predating wolf.

Ryuu paid them no heed.

The Clawders paid them no heed.

Xetas and Kaya's pack paid them no heed.

They knew the delegates had not their sensitive hearing sense, and they could not hear what they were hearing. They couldn't hear the snarls of carnivores filling the air, they could not hear the helpless cries from a Drakdeer fawn and its mother coming their way, trying to escape from their chasers. Before any of the other Tribes could react, the Chezamon quickly pushed them towards the bushes and pressed their bodies against the ground, peeking their eyes and noses from the thick plants ever so slightly.

The other Tribe Creatures heard plants and branches snapping, hooves and paws stomping against the ground and animalistic snarls and bark-like growls. Bodhal was trembling, but that didn't stop him from writing into his journal, much to Xetas annoyance. Siado tried to stand up to see what was happening, but Ryuu violently pushed him back, making the Mipedian groan in pain.

"What as that for?!" he hissed.

Ryuu growled in a soft whisper. "Be quiet! They'll hear us!"

"Who?"

Two blurs stomped their hooves into the ground just a few inches in front of the bush, near the Mipedian's face, making him flinch in shock. A great beast with the head of a horse, the body of a deer, the bushy legs of an elk and great antlers like those of a fallow-deer. Running next to it was a much smaller exemplar, with no antlers and thin legs.

A doe and her fawn were trying to escape from something, but what…?

Suddenly, eight or nine blurs of black lunged at the mother doe and pinned her to the ground with their massive paws, some of them tripping in the process when the doe fell to the ground with a loud thud and slipped through the mud.

Anyone would have confused them with armor less Clawders were they the right size, but no; these animals, although almost identical to the Chezamon themselves in appearance, were double their size, and their fur was as black as night or the blackness in a cavern. Their eyes seemed to glow a demonic shade of red, making even Faash shiver at the sight. One of the animals dug its blood-red teeth into the doe's body, while the others kept her in place as she violently tried to get free from her attackers, attempting to kick their faces or their stomachs, but to no avail. The fawn called out for its mother, but this only called the attention of the black beasts; the fawn dashed away as fast as it could and disappeared into the forest, followed by three of the beasts.

The doe finally remained motionless, and her tongue hung on the side of her mouth.

Sobtjek's eyes widened in horror.

Tangath Toborn, although he remained his calm, deep inside he felt sorry for the poor mother and child.

Takinom felt like her stomach would flip.

Faash froze in fear upon seeing the blood dripping into the grass.

"What are those things?!" Agitos hissed.

"Those, my friend…" Shaoran spoke in a serious tone. "Are Galliacs."

"Galliacs?" Bierk repeated, managing to take his sight off the grotesque scene.

"One of our worst enemies, and the second most dangerous predator in Mist Forest." Toba explained, for once his usually happy demeanor gone, replaced by a tone as bristle as frosted glass. "We don't really know where they came from. A legend says that the Galliacs may have once been Chezamon like us, however, they were driven away from the Den by severe taxes, stricter laws or something. They achieved their present terrible state due to some unspecified persecution. They made their living inside natural caverns near the feet of the mountains, where they were more prone to Chamil and Undermole attacks. They became embittered by their exile, and soon they developed an irreversible animosity and hatred for their once fellow Chezamon, and they became cruel and merciless. As solems passed, their fur became as black as their hearts, their eyes changed to a devilish red in order to show their evil nature, and their fangs turned red because of the blood left from their victims and prey. Since they lived in rocky areas, their paws became thick, big and their claws sharpened like knives."

"In other words, they're mean." Kaya shortened up the rest of the monologue. "I'm not happy to say this, but about three a quarter of our Hunters are killed… _and_ devoured by the Galliacs."

The rest of the Creatures simply stared in horror as the three Galliacs who had gone after the fawn returned from the bushes, one of them holding the corpse of the baby in it's mouth. The pack of Galliacs dragged both corpses away, not caring if they were disrespecting the 'death'.

When he was sure the Galliacs were out of earshot, Xetas motioned all the others it was safe to go out of hiding.

Tunobar sighed. "That was a close one."

"Close one?! Our guests just witnesses one of Mist Forest's most gruesome scenes ever!" Shaoran growled.

"Do not worry, we have seen far worse." Ailav said, before glancing at Bodhal. "_Most_ of us, at least."

"I beg your pardon? What's that supposed to mean?!" Bodhal crossed his arms, pausing his writing of the 'Galliac Attack' in his journal.

"Stop it!" Rosaryn snapped her teeth. "I'm afraid we'll have to split up, it seems."

"What, are you nuts?!" Ryuu wailed, widening his eyes. "Didn't you just see the Galliacs?!"

"I don't think you should be reminding us of those…" Bierk shivered at the blood left on the spot the black-clad beasts a few minutes ago. "Animals."

"Sir, with all due respect, that would be a good course of action-"

"No, you listen!" Ryuu snarled, interrupting Barlow and showing his gums, slitting his pupils. "Have you forgotten what they taught you in Hunter's Den?! That is not the only Galliac pack roaming around, they always send multiple packs to hunt!"

Toba timidly lifted his paw. "I agree with him."

"So do I!" Kaya was next.

"Excuse me." Takinom softly tapped Ryuu's shoulder. "What would happen if we splat up, like she is suggesting?"

"What would happen?" Kaya replied. "One Galliac pack is formed by ten or eleven members. If we splat up, we would be more vulnerable."

"You say if one of the groups encountered a Galliac pack, we would be outnumbered?" Tangath Toborn added.

"Finally, someone sees my logic!" Ryuu added insult to injury to Rosaryn's suggestion making her look down in disappointment.

That was when Xetas had enough. "Ryuu, do you have any idea of how much time we will take in surveying all this area if we remain in a whole group? It will take us hours, we won't even survey the whole area before nighttime!"

"So, you would rather sacrifice the delegates from the other Tribes just to impress your girlfriend? You would sacrifice your whole pack, and Shaoran's?!"

As Ryuu and Shaoran's pack argued with Xetas's pack about splitting up or not, minutes went on. The sun slowly advanced through its daily route, guiding whatever moved in Mist Forest. The Takinom decided to go up in one of the trees in order to 'get away from Overworlder stench, Bodhal continued writing on his journal while Tangath Toborn and the Mipedians remained on the lookout for any Galliacs. Faash walked away from the group for a while in order to get away from the bickering. Ryuu's Clawders just sat in place, waiting for orders from their Captain, serious looks upon their faces, staring frontwards.

"So, you are the Alpha's elite guard?" Bierk decided to try and converse with one of the Clawders to kill the time.

After a while, the Clawder nearest to him, a young male with piercing eyes of mint, spoke. "Yes, we are." His tone was cold as a snowflake.

"What do you call yourself?"

"My name is Nightroath, sir."

"My name is Bierk." The Danian hesitated, intimidated by the Clawder's seriousness. "I don't suppose you could tell me about-"

"No sir."

"You only answer to Ryuu, am I right?"

"Yes sir." Every word Nightroath spoke in a tone that left no room for argument.

"Will they take long in deciding what to do?"

"Certainly not sir."

Bierk thought for a moment. "Don't you have to answer to the Princess D'aura- No, no, that was not it, Draurora- No!"

If he could, Nightroath would have chuckled. "Princess D'Aurora Fenniris."

"Well, the Princess, don't you have to answer to her as well?"

"Depends on what she says, sir. If she tells me to charge to my death so she can get away from her enemies then I'll do it double quick. If she tells me to run away so she can face her enemies personally, then I don't have to take a bit of notice."

Bierk couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at that remark.

"Okay, then!" Ryuu brought everyone back to the two arguing packs. "Since Xetas insists so much, then I suppose we could split up, but the condition is that I will choose who is going with who, so I want to hear no complaints!"

Ryuu examined at their 'little' group, and thought it would be wiser to separate the Tribes from each other to avoid bickering over courses of action if they were co encounter Galliacs or any potential danger. Three of his packs had perished this way in his youth.

"Okay, Barlow and Kaya are accompanying the Overworlders. Tunobar and Xetas will go with the Underworlders. Jerome and Tolash, you go with the Mipedians. Rosaryn and Toba, you will go with the Danians-"

"What?!" Xetas snapped. "Why with Toba?! Why me with Tunobar?!"

Tunobar rolled his eyes. "I'm glad to know you like me so much." He said sarcastically.

"What did I just say about complaints?!" Ryuu snarled back. "If you thought I would put you in the same team as her so that you could get all romantic you were wrong!"

Xetas muttered something inaudible as he sat down. Shaoran inquired. "What about you and I?"

"You and I will survey the area in search of this said intruders." Ryuu spoke outloud to the other Hunters. "If you catch any foreign scent, you are to use a Howl Call loud and clear to call for reinforcements. Do not attempt to engage in combat by yourselves until we know what this stranger can do. Do you get me?"

There were mumblings of agreement among the Hunters.

"I SAID, DO YOU GET ME?!

"YES SIR!" the Hunters all shouted.

"Dismissed!" Ryuu barked

The respective groups went their separate ways, all the while Xetas giving Rosaryn a sad glance before turning his head around, two Clawders accompanying each group. Bodhal couldn't help it and asked. "Hey, Kaya, is Xetas dating Rosaryn?"

Kaya rolled his eyes. "That blue moron wants to ask her out, but he wants to do it 'in private'. That's why he always backs her up, he tries to impress her, but that's never going to work."

"Hey, you don't have to call him moron!" Barlow said.

Tangath Toborn sighed. This was going to be a _long_ afternoon.


	16. Chamil Attack

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 16- Chamil Attack

"They went where?!" Tom asked incredulously, shifting on the… ground. They had no chairs.

Rocket felt much better now, his nostrils cleared thanks to Sakura's tea. "Two members of each Tribe accompanied the others to search for this said intruder, but I still think that was a very bad idea. It's like making a Galliac and a Chezamon go for a walk together."

"Aw, man! They left without us!" Peyton whined in dismay. "We could have gotten a handful of new scans!"

"And encounter one of those Galliacs they are always talking about?" Kaz retorted, gulping. "No, thanks! If they talk that way about those things, they must be pretty bad!"

Rocket looked away. "You have no idea."

"Come on, Kaz!" Luna crossed her arms. "No risk, no gain!" she and Sarah made a high-five with smirks in their faces.

"Rocket, are you sure there isn't someone who can take us to the others?" Sarah asked once more with puppy-like eyes.

"The only ones strong enough to take five humans out on a tour of Mist Forest at this time of the day would be Torimaku, Hukaro, Ookamo and the Clawders." Rocket sighed. "But Torimaku's too old to be pupsitting around, Hukaro will most likely say no, Ookamo is not going anywhere near 'filthy, furless, weakling humans' as he put it yesterday and the Clawders only answer to Ryuu. So I guess you'll have to stay here."

"Wait a second, don't Clawders answer to the Alphas too?" Tom retorted.

"The Alphas are not letting you outside the Den."

"And Princess Fen?"

The humans didn't fail to notice rocket blushing at the mention of Fen. "Well, they do answer to Fen as well, but I bet she must be busy right now."

"Doing what? The Clawders don't let her breath, remember?" Sarah rolled her eyes, before her face changed to her 'I-got-a-idea' expression. "How about she is the one that gives us the tour?"

Rocket immediately jumped to four with an expression obviously reading 'ARE YOU NUTS?!' and let out a yell that the humans swore resounded in all the Den. "WHAT?! Have you lost your mind?! That would put Princess Fen's life in danger, if you dare doing that the Alphas will put you on trial for endangering Fen's life!"

"You think I'm that weak?"

"No, I don't think-" Rocket blinked in confusion at the new voice, and slowly turned his head around to encounter annoyed blue eyes staring at him. "PRINCESS FEN!"

The boys laughed at how rocket jumped back like a scared cat, his fur bristled and his pupils nearly disappeared.

"Y-Your Highness, I d-didn't mean t-to say that…" Rocket stuttered nervously under her eyes. "I mean, what if you encounter a Galliac pack, or a Chamil, or a Nightseeker?"

"Please, Rocket! I'm not a pup, I can defend myself. Now you're going to start acting like Father and Mother too?" Fen growled softly, flicking her wings. "And here I thought you were not like them."

This time it was Sarah and Luna's time to giggle at Rocket's face. "But princess, I-"

"So, I guess that to try and change the opinion I have of you right now, you'll help me sneak out of the Den so that I can give our human guests a look around the forest." Fen had her back turned on Rocket, but the humans could clearly see a small grin on her maw. "Won't you?"

By then, they could see Rocket was at emotional crossroads, judging by his face being so red with embarrassment it almost made his blue fur look purple, and his panting tongue. After a few seconds, Rocket closed his eyes shut, pressed his ears against his head and reluctantly replied. "Fine. I'll see what I can do."

Rocket trotted out of the cave with an embarrassed expression. As soon as he left, and Fen was sure he was out of earshot, she started giggling.

"That was amazing!" Sarah exclaimed, standing up and walking towards the princess. "You just told him a few words and that was enough to convince him!"

"How did you do that?" Luna joined in.

Fen smiled playfully at them. "When you're dealing with males, you must learn their weakness, exploit it, and they fall like leaves off a tree. Casually, Rocket's weakness is the great crush he has on me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Rocket…" Tom pointed at the direction Rocket had gone. "Crush… you?"

"He won't admit it, but yes. The truth is he's practically attracted to me by my looks, as are most males in this Pack." Fen sighed.

Suddenly, Peyton remembered something he had heard from Syena when they were being questioned. It was when Hukaro pinned Sarah to the ground and Syena scolded him.

_You wouldn't want __**her**__ to find out through the Nobles what you are doing to a girl?_

"Wait a second, now that I recall..." Peyton felt awkward at asking this. "The other day, Syena said something to Hukaro about someone finding out through the Nobles about what he did to Sarah?" Peyton gulped. "Was she talking about you?"

Fen blinked and twitched her left ear, before replying. "Oh, that." The Chezamon Princess sighed. "Hukaro and I are engaged."

The look the humans gave her nearly sent her into another round of giggles.

"Engaged?" Kaz repeated incredulously.

"You're going to marry?" Luna added.

"It's a long story. When mother and father step down, Hukaro and I are to marry to become the next Alphas. You haven't seen him when I'm around…" Fen took a paw to her mouth to suppress a giggle. "It's like he's talking on top of a stage."

"You know, I wonder what Kaya is dong right now."

* * *

><p>Barlow was definitely not happy about having being partnered with Kaya. Practically, he was doing all the work while Kaya did nothing more than speak with Bodhal in a rather awkward manner. The red Hunter was especially struggling with Bodhal's insistence on Roth shards.<p>

"I tell you, Bodhal, we have never heard anything of these Roth shards you're talking about. Even if we had, only the Alphas and Nobles would know about it. Hunters, Healers, Pups, Pupsitters and under-nobility Chezamon are not disclosed that information."

"Are you certain?" Bodhal insisted, struggling with his over-packed satchel.

"I think it would be best if you stopped asking Kaya about shards. It is clear he knows not about them." Tangath intervened, removing a branch from his way. "Besides, I can tell you've given him a headache."

"As a matter of fact, he has." Kaya retorted, rubbing his temples with his paws. "Does he always speak that much? I bet he would knock Galliacs out of boredom."

"Hahaha, I'm laughing." Bodhal looked away with a huff.

"If you've finished talking with your new friends, how about you come here and help me, Kaya?!" Barlow snarled back at his partner. "Seriously, how does your pack stand your indulgence?!"

kaya frowned and stomped till he was pressing his head against Barlow's. "Hey! I don't reply as I should for one single reason!"

Barlow narrowed his eyes and pressed his head back. "What reason?!"

Kaya looked down sadly. "I didn't get what you said."

Barlow smirked and was about to continue when he caught a sound. Barlow's ears twitched, and motioned the red-fur to listen carefully. While Bodhal was sketching a patch of serpent-shaped flowers on a tree, Tangath noticed as the two Hunters perked their ears to their highest, their pupils gone to slits.

"What is it?"

"There's a sound coming from the north, it's not so far away." Barlow replied warily. He sniffed the air, and his eyes widened. "Not only it's a big one, it's scent is foreign. I have never smelt such a creature in my entire life."

Tangath Toborn understood. "It seems we have found our mysterious Creature."

"Hurry up! Keep with us!"

Before the Overworlders could react, the Chezamon darted off. Tangath abruptly took Bodhal by the scruff of his neck and ran after the Hunters. Bodhal yelped in surprise as his body dangled from the lion's grasp and barely could put his research notes back into the satchel.

"What are you doing?! Let me go at once! I didn't get to see the purpose of those flowers!"

"They're leaving us behind, Bodhal. And don't forget we're foreigners in a strange land. Have you forgotten the Galliacs?"

While it usually took about five minutes for a Chezamon to run to nearby places (about one hundred feet away), Barlow and Kaya had to slow down their pace lest they wanted to lose their delegates from sight. Ryuu would have their heads if they did! Because of this, it took them fifteen minutes to reach their destination, followed by the Overworlders.

But as they came near, Kaya and Barlow recognized the growls and snaps of the Galliacs. They came to a dead stop, and motioned the Overworlders-or rather, Tangath Toborn- to stop, and make no noise.

"Don't make any noise. I'll see what's going on." Kaya whispered, before stalking towards the bushes, his tail stretched in a perfect horizontal position.

Tails, along with ears and eye, were the three things that could tell others the mood or the intentions of a Chezamon. Tails being held up in the air meant the owner of said tails were members of Nobility or High-Ranker warriors, while tails beneath the line of the back meant they were Hunters, Healers or low-ranks. Wagging tails mean '_let's play_', tails between the legs meant '_I'm harmless, please don't hurt me_', and tails held high, curled and bristled meant '_stay away or I'll bite_'.

For exploring Hunters, a tail held in a horizontally perfect and still meant 'stay here and don't make any noise'. If there was no danger ahead, Kaya would lightly wag his tail, meaning 'you can come out'. But if there was something dangerous ahead, the Hunter would hide his tail between his legs, meaning 'stay back'.

Kaya made a small hole in the bushes, moving the leaves and branches aside with his nose, and took a look at the clearing. His sapphire blue eyes went open like plates.

A giant, aqua green giant eel-like beast was in the middle of that clearing. It floated, with no wings or anything. But that was not the scary thing.

The creature was being attacked by Galliacs, a pack of ten. The black beasts had never seen a Creature like it, so they were wary, but their aggressive nature was still winning. The giant eel screeched as one of the Galliac hunters dug his teeth into its flesh, and tried in vain to shake him off. One thing both Chezamon and Galliacs had in common was that when their teeth got a hold of something, it was very hard (and painful) to shake them off. In fact, the eel had already bleeding cuts and teeth marks across all its body.

Kaya silently hid his tail between his legs.

Barlow understood and turned towards the Overworlders. "There's something up ahead. If you want to see, get down into those bushes, but don't make any noise.

Tangath Toborn kneeled, got on all fours and crawled next to Kaya, removing the leaves blocking the vision. His heart nearly stopped when he saw who the Galliacs were attacking.

"It… can't be…"

"What, you know that…. Thing?"

"That thing is a M'arrillian. I suppose the humans have told you all about those fish brains."

Kaya nodded. "They tried to flood Perim, right?"

"Yes. We all thought all M'arrillians had fled back into the Doors of the Deep Mines, however did one of them find this place?"

The M'arrillian screeched once more, this time when he felt the whole pack of Galliacs jump on top of it and dig their claws and teeth on his flesh in an attempt to subdue him.

"We have to do something!" Tangath couldn't help but feel sorry for the M'arrillian, but not out of pity. If they let him loose, he could get away. And who knew how many more of them were in this Forest.

"What can we do? It's a Galliac pack! Four, or five if that giant eel sides with us temporally, against ten will do no good! And what about the M'arrillians famous mind control?"

"What's going on there?!" Bodhal asked from behind the bush, Barlow wouldn't let him peek his head above the bush.

"Can't you call the others?"

"If I do that, it'll alert them to our presence. We're too close to the Galliacs."

Finally, the M'arrillian could no more. He let his pain-stricken body fall to the ground with a loud thud. He couldn't do anything as the Galliacs rushed towards is neck, probably to give him the killing blow.

The beasts were knocked off his back by a beam or pink, sparkling energy. To Tangath and Kaya's shock and surprise, Princess Fen flew from the heart of the forest and landed protectively in front of the M'arrillian.

"PRINCESS FEN!"

While the Galliacs recovered from the attack, Kaya and Barlow figuratively flew towards their princess, followed by the Overworlders. Just as Rocket, and Luna's pack emerged from the bushes. Both groups obviously weren't expecting to see the other.

"Rocket?!" Kaya snapped

"Kaya? Barlow?" Rocket was next.

"Children?" Tangath referred to Tom and the humans.

"What are you doing here?!" Barlow asked.

"We came here to scan some more Creatures," Peyton trembled and pointed behind Kaya. "But I don't think they will be happy about it…"

Tom realized what he meant. "The Galliacs!"

The Galliacs were back on their feet, and stalked hungrily towards the group, licking their blood red teeth in anticipation for such an abundant meal Rocket pushed the humans aside, while Princess Fen put a protective wing around them. Bodhal joined them soon after, he was not precisely a fan of actual battles.

"Stay there!" Barlow ordered with a snarl. "Galliacs always go first after the weakest!

Kaya, Rocket, Barlow and Tangath Toborn formed a protective formation around the group, as well as the M'arrillian. The Galliacs were not intimidated, they knew their strength was in their numbers, and this pack of Chezamon, if you could call it that, was not only lacking warriors, but they had brought their princess with them.

This was a chance they would not waste.

Kaya gulped. He knew this was a lost case, they were outnumbered, and only four capable of fighting. The M'arrillian was in no condition to battle, and Princess Fen had her attentions set on protecting the humans-and the trembling Bodhal, as an extension.

"Rocket, if we don't make it out of here, I want you to know…" Kaya closed his eyes shut. "It was me who put the leeches in your bath."

"WHAT?!" Rocket shouted. "It was you?!"

"Guys…" Sarah said, not for the first time fearing for her life. "Now's really not the time!"

The Galliacs got closer…

A sudden screech, no, roar, sounding like claws scratching on a brick wall, made everyone freeze. The ground started trembling. Kaya heard the birds flying away over the trees from the Norwest. The Galliacs realized what was coming, and their whole demeanor changed from aggression to fear.

"Let's get out of here!"

To everyone's (minus the Chezamon) surprise, the Galliacs darted away, at the opposite direction of the sound. The humans just stared at the direction they had run into. The black-furred creatures that had threatened them a few seconds ago had simply run away just like that?

"What was that all about?" Tom inquired without taking his gaze off the bushed and trees they had disappeared into.

Tangath Toborn had a bad feeling about this. He never thought he would see those blood-thirsty beasts run away from something… but what was big enough to scare off a whole pack of Galliacs?"

Fen gulped; she knew. "There's only one predator that the Galliacs fear…"

"As well as us…· Rocket's legs were trembling by then. "You want to know what a Chamil is? Well, here you go…"

First emerged a giant clawed paw covered in deep green fur, then the other, and finally came the five-meter head of a crocodile wrapped in gray fur.

Chamils were, so far, the largest and most deadly predator in Mist Forest. They were the size of a three-story high human house. The head of a crocodile, the body of a wolf, and a spike-covered tail of seven meters long. Sharp rows of teeth were accommodated in the inside of his mouth, its sharp, slit-pupiled yellow eyes setting on the group. Covered completely in gray fur, feathering at the edge of his six thick legs. His tail was covered in retractable spikes, so thick and strong that, even for a Danian, one hit from a Chamil's tail was an immediate and painful death.

Despite its invincible appearance, Chamils did have a few weaknesses. Due to living in stinking marshes at the feet of the mountains, Chamils lost use of their smelling sense, and had to rely on their sight and touch to find prey. Their tails were extremely sensitive, the spikes and spines covering it acted both as a weapon and armor. But their major weakness lay in the inside of their mouth, in their tongues. It was all soft, one single attack at their tongues was enough to send them away in agony.

Kaya froze in terror. He felt the hungry eyes of the Chamil pose on him specifically, thus it didn't help at all. He could still remember it. The roar, screams, howls and growls of agony, the monster nearly closing his jaws on him…

Fen immediately turned her attention to the humans. "Port out of here, _now_!"

"What?!"Luna asked incredulously, but shivering at the thought of being near that monster. "We can't leave you here!"

"Luna, Chamils are not like Galliacs! There's no reasoning with them, they kill out of pure pleasure! It's too risky for you to stay!"

"But what about you?!" Kaz added, as the Chamil took yet another step.

"We'll be fine!" Tangath Toborn yelled, getting his sword ready for the beast. "But you are incapable of fighting! Go back to Chaotic!"

Reluctantly, but knowing they had no other choice unless they wanted to be coded, the five humans took their scanners and ported out of the clearing.

The Chamil licked his chops and a sickly grin appeared on his scaly lips, knocking trees down with one swing of his massive tail. Four Hunters, and a winged specimen. The lion and the giant eel were new to him, but as long as he could digest them he didn't mind if they were from another place.

"Listen carefully, everyone!" Rocket snarled. "Remember what we learned! If we can't run, we must force him to open his mouth and attack his tongue! That'll send him away whining like a pup! But avoid his tail or you're done for!"

Tangath nodded.

Barlow snapped. "Got it."

Fen unfurled her wings, preparing to take off.

As the Chamil drew nearer, Rocket awaited for Kaya's answer, but it never came.

"Kaya?"

The red-furred Hunter didn't answer. He was trapped in his memories of the last Chamil he ever encountered, when he was only a three seasons old. He had prayed with all his might to the Spirits to never encounter one again, but it seemed they enjoyed in seeing him suffer like this.

Rocket recognized the frozen, blank and nearly-pupiless stare on Kaya's eyes. "Oh, no…" Rocket took Kaya by the shoulders and tried to make him react. "Kaya! Snap out of it! It's not the time to paralyze!"

Kaya didn't reply.

The Chamil lunged.


	17. Instinct

Legend of the Chezamon

Chapter 17- Immunity

* * *

><p>Fen conjured a protective blue shield around the group to protect them from the Chamil's claws, but the beast's nails pierced through it with one single swipe. Tangath countered with a fire attack from his sword, but it did little damage to the Chamil's skin.<p>

"Kaya!" Barlow had joined Rocket in trying to snap Kaya out of his frozen state.

Realizing it was no use, Rocket turned to the princess. "Princess Fen, you must get out of here!"

Fen snapped. "I'm not leaving you here!"

Tangath attracted the Chamil's attention from the M'arrillian and the Chezamon, and barely avoided a swipe from the Chamil's tail, which instead hit a dead tree, shattering into splinters.

"Princess, go fetch Kazehana and the Skyguard! They'll be able to help!" Barlow snarled. "We alone won't last long!

Tangath avoided another swing of the Chamil's tail, and fired a Spirit Gust at his unarmored tail. The Chamil roared in pain when the attack hit the soft, pinkish parts of his tail, but this only made him angrier.

Realizing they were both right, Fen nodded. "I'll be back!" With a flap of her wings, she was off the ground and dashing through the air, away from the battlefield. Bodhal panicked when he felt his shield fly away, and tried to hide behind the Eel soldier's body.

The M'arrillian had regained a little bit of strength, but he could barely lift his head off the ground. Still, he managed to take a look at his rescuers. Tangath Toborn, and wolf-like beasts, trying to fend off the gigantic animal with the spiky tail. They weren't having much luck, however.

Rocket fired a Howling Burst at the Chamil's maw, combined with Barlow's Sonic Scream, nearly strong enough to make the Chamil step back. But the Chamil roared in fury, and swung his tail at the two.

Kaya had been frozen all the time, but when he saw his best friend nearly being crushed by the Chamil's tail, something inside his brain snapped. Everything around him stopped, like time standing still. Slowly, Kaya's pupils started narrowing until they became thin black lines, nearly invisible to the naked eye.

A deep growl rose from his throat, and his lips curled back.

Rocket noticed this. "Kaya?"

Before he could get closer, the red-furred Hunter dashed towards the Chamil, in a fit of speed. The Chamil was taken by surprise, for he hadn't expected for a Hunter to lunge at him this way, but he didn't care. As long as he could eat he didn't care. But his jaws closed in thin air, in this state Hunters were faster and much more agile than when they used their heads.

Kaya was a different Chezamon. He no longer thought, driven only by his instincts, and his subconscious desire to kill. He had gone into Prey Drive mode.

Prey Drive mode was neither a good thing, nor a bad thing. It depended on how it was used, but it had a major setback. When in Prey Drive, Chezamon lost all use of reason as long as it remained active, and were completely driven by their animal instincts. They could go as far as to not being able to distinguish friends from foes, unless they had learned their allies' scents beforehand. The most skilled Chezamon warriors could trigger and deactivate Prey Drive at will, but most Chezamon's Prey Drive was triggered by becoming too stressed, or in this case, when in danger.

Kaya dug his teeth into the Chamil's nose, making the predator screech in pain and shake his head violently in an attempt to shake him off.

But what made things worse was that Kaya's Prey Drive triggered Rocket's. Like Kaya, Rocket's pupils turned into nearly-invisible slits and his reason was taken over by his instinct. Rocket lunged to the Chamil's legs and dug his teeth into his toe, making him screech once more.

"What's gotten into them?" Bodhal exclaimed upon seeing the Hunters' behavior.

"Prey Drive, that's what!" Barlow replied in a foreboding voice. "They are not thinking right now, they're just driven by their beastly side. On that state we Chezamon are unpredictable, and we won't distinguish strangers as allies." Barlow turned to the Overworlders. "That's why we must learn the scents of newcomers or strangers, so our Prey Drive won't be a danger to them."

The Chamil finally made Kaya released his nose, sending him flying against a tree; Kaya whined in pain, but the pain only lasted a few seconds, before he gnashed his teeth and charged at the Chamil again. Rocket moved from the legs to the Chamil's neck, making the predator roar in pain.

"How do we defeat this thing?!" Tangath snarled, using a Vine Snare on the Chamil's back legs to try and make him lose his balance, but the beast just shook it off like it was nothing. "Out attacks aren't working!"

"The Chamil only has two weaknesses." Barlow explained. "The skin under the spines of its tail, and its tongue. If you strike hard any of the two, you send him away whining like a puppy. But it's very hard to make him expose those two parts, because he knows it."

The Chamil swung his tail and Rocket, but the Hunter dodged it with a great jump and landed on exposed skin. He immediately dug his teeth into it, even in that state remembering the Chamil's weakness. A terrible, excruciating pain shot through the Chamil's tail, screeching and roaring in agony as it tried to desperately shake Rocket off his tail, to no avail.

"Now!" Barlow snarled. "Fire at his tongue!"

Tangath and Barlow shot a fire Attack aimed at the Chamil's now unexposed tongue, making him screech in agony even more. Finally shaking Rocket off his tail, the Chamil turned around and sped out of the clearing, his screeches echoing in the forest. Tangath Toborn and Bodhal started cheering for their victory, but immediately after the Chamil ran away, Kaya and Rocket's attention turned to them.

"Guys!" Barlow tried to make them reason, but they had been too long in the Prey Drive to snap out of it so easily. The two Hunters approached the two Overworlders like they were stalking a prey, showing their teeth and growling. But they couldn'tbe targeting Tangath of Bodhal, they had learned their scents as soon as they came into the forest… realization hit Barlow. The M'arrillian, they did not know his scent, they saw him as a potential prey.

Before they could lunge, however, suddenly two large, winged Chezamon landed on top of them to keep them from harming anyone. The winged creature holding down Rocket was a great, dark-blue colored male with yellow and green wing feathers, while the one holding Kaya was a female with yellow fur, cake yellow underbelly and gray wings. Rocket and Kaya snarled and gnashed their teeth, growling and even _barking_ in protest.

"They're in Prey Drive, it seems." The blue-furred male stated.

"Can you snap them out of it?" Bodhal inquired, flinching at the two Hunters' irrational behavior. "They're freaking me out!"

As a reply, the female held out a Mugic, colored green. The two Overworlders guessed it was Chezamon mugic. As it floated into the air, a green aura rose from the female's body, and into the mugic.

"Soul Heal!" she shouted.

When the seven notes of the mugic resonated through the air, swirl of golden and silver light flew down into Rocket and Kaya's foreheads. Seconds after, Kaya and Rocket stopped snarling and calmed down, their pupils dilating, their heads clearing up.

"Owowow…." Kaya winced under the female's weight, and looked up at her. "Silar, you're squashing my intestines."

"Sorry." She stepped off him, sensing he was back to normal. Her male partner stepped off Rocket as well, letting the blue-furred Hunter stand up.

"Thunderbolt, no offense, but you should go on a diet." Rocket gasped for air.

The winged male rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you tell Kaya that?"

Kaya looked at him, offended. "For you information, I only weight a ton!"

Barlow rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Seriously, you."

No one had noticed the M'arrillian lift his head softly, and take aim at Rocket for something. If he could take control of one of the wolf Creatures, maybe he could make his escape. With the last of his strength, the eel soldier fired a mind-control arrow at Rocket.

At the last moment, Kaya realized what was about to happen, and he quickly pushed Rocket aside, confusing everyone, until they saw the arrow struck the red-furred Hunter.

Tangath Toborn immediately pointed his sword at Kaya, preparing to attack him. He didn't like it, but he was probably under the M'arrillian's mind control now. Silar and Thunderboltflew to the M'arrillian's head and pinned him to the ground, gnashing their teeth at him.

"Tangath, what are you doing?!" Rocket asked in shock upon realizing what the Overworlder was going to do.

"Step back! He's probably under control now!"

"Under-what?" Barlow inquired, "What are you talking about?!"

The eel M'arrillian mentally ordered Kaya to get the winged Chezamon off him. Nothing happened.

Kaya shook his head and took a paw to his head. "My brain is itching."

"Kaya?" Rocket approached his friend warily. "Is that you?"

Kaya stared at him. "No, I'm Hukaro." He stated sarcastically. "Of course I have to be Kaya! Who else can I be?"

The giant eel ordered him to attack his captors again, but once more Kaya only felt a small itching in his brain, nothing more.

"How can it be?" Tangath lowered his sword, staring at Kaya in surprise. "The M'arrillian struck you with a Mind-control attack, you should be under his influence!"

"Mind-control?" Rocket recalled Luna's pack talking about the M'arrillians mind control, but he thought they were exaggerating.

"You mean they have immunity?!" Bodhal stepped forward, pushing Barlow aside, and staring at Kaya dumbfounded. "How is that even possible?!"

the Hunters obviously had no idea why they were making such a ruckus about it, for they had not been in the M'arrillian invasion. They never had to attack mind-controlled comrades, nor had been mind-controlled themselves.

"What do we do with him, then?" Rocket pointed at the eel M'arrillian. "IF we leave him here, the Galliacs will surely come back for him, and he won't have anyone to help him, then."

"We should take that scum back to your Den." Tangath stated, pointing his sword at the M'arrillian. "If he made it this far into your territory, there must be a M'arrillian camp somewhere, and he was just a scout."

The Chezamon present grew alarmed at those words.

"He's right, we cannot let him go." Barlow agreed. "We should first take him back to the den, then interrogate him."

"How are we supposed to take him back, genius?" Kaya stated. "He must weight even more than me? And we don't have a cart!"

Rocket thought for a moment. H just had an idea, but Kaya would not like it.

* * *

><p>"Wait until I get my paws on Rocket!" Hukaro snapped, pacing around the Main Hal of the Den, just in the northern entrance. "Risking Princess Fen's life like that, unforgivable!"<p>

"If you don't stop, you'll make a ditch with your big, stinky paws." Ryuu stated, sitting a few steps away, staring at the Beta Male irritated.

"You're the one to talk! You're in charge of Fen's wellbeing, and look what nearly happened!"

"You can't blame him for that, he was assigned to escort the delegates through Mist Forest, he couldn't have known Rocket would help Princess Fen sneak out of the Den." Jerome pointed out from his place next to Shaoran and Toba.

Ryuu taunted Hukaro with a grin. "Ha."

"Well, who am I supposed to blame, then?!" Hukaro snapped.

"Yourself, for a change."

"WHAT?!" Hukaro's voice echoed in the Main Hall, and the surrounding caverns. "ME?!"

"She's your future mate, and you can't even know when she will try to do things like this. Unlike me, you were actually _in_ the Den."

"You're so lucky you're not under my jurisdiction, Ryuu….!" Hukaro stared at him with an angry glare.

"Why must the two of them always be arguing about something?" Shaoran shook his head.

"I'll never understand males." Hikari shook her head.

Before Hukaro and Ryuu could say something else, a gray Hunter rushed into the Main Hall from the northern entrance, looking scared out of his wits. "Hukaro! Kaya, Rocket and Barlow are back with the Overworld delegates-!"

"What are you waiting for?!" Hukaro snarled. "Bring them here so I can kill Rocket!"

"But sir, They've brought a captive!"

"What?!" Ryuu jumped to his paws and approached the Hunter. "What kind of captive?"

"They called him a… what was it… Marilan, no…. Arillin…. M'arrillian!"

"M'arrillian?!" both Ryuu and Hukaro repeated simultaneously.

"You mean the Creatures Tom and the others were talking about?" Shaoran inquired.

"I guess so. It's like a giant eel or a sea serpent! I've ever seen anything so ugly!"

Just as he was done speaking, Ryuu's ears caught the sound of something being dragged down. Kaya, Rocket and Barlow walked into the Main Hall, with ropes tied around their waists, and panting like they were pulling a giant rock. They dragged the M'arrillian into the Main hall, the other end of the ropes tied around his thick neck. He had a thick rope acting as a muzzler tied around his snout. Tangath and Bodhal helped by pushing the eel soldier from behind. The three finally stopped, a few pawsteps away from Hukaro and Ryuu.

"Damn it! If I had known I would pull a giant eel back to the Den, I would have rather stayed behind with the pups!" Kaya growled, gasping for air.

"What are you complaining about? I'm the one doing all the work here!" Rocket protested.

"What's that thing?!" Jerome pointed at the M'arrillian with a terrified expression in his face. "It's horrible!"

"More importantly, Rocket, who gave you permission to sneak Princess Fen out of the Den?!" Hukaro yelled at the blue-furred Hunter.

Rocket gulped. "W-well, I…"

"She could have been hurt by the Galliacs, or worse, killed by the Chamil! How would we answer to the Alphas, then?!"

"She didn't mean to go into battle, she just wanted to take a breath of fresh air!"

"Well, she could have waited for me to return, and I would have sent some of my Clawders to escort her outside." Ryuu growled softly.

"That's the reason she went out on her own account, Ryuu." Kaya stated. "She's tired of being surrounded by guards even when she goes to the bathroom!"

The unconscious M'arrillian stirred instinctively, making Jerome flinch and nearly faint. Hukaro knew now was not the right time to punish Rocket. First they would take care of this M'arrillian, _then_ he'd punish Rocket. "Shaoran, Jerome, Toba!" the three Hunters approached. "Take this… M'arrillian to the dungeons, feed him, but do not let him out! The rest…!" he pointed to Rocket, Shaoran and Barlow. "Come with me!"

Rocket let out a gulp as he, Kaya and Barlow followed Hukaro out of the Main Hall, probably to see the alphas and tell them what had happened, as well to decide what to do with the M'arrillian. Ryuu walked closer to Tangath and Bodhal. "Sorry you had to see that. Hukaro takes threats to Princess Fen very seriously."

"We can see that." Bodhal muttered under his breath.

"I must say, I'm impressed." Ryuu commented. "Most encounters with Chamils end up very bad, few manage to defeat one, and you've just entered that group." Ryuu grinned slightly. "For outsiders, you're not that bad."

"Well, of course!" Bodhal's chest swelled up with pride. "I had the situation under control!"

"You talk much, Bodhal, for hiding behind Barlow for the entire battle." Tangath stated.

"I wasn't hiding! I was analyzing the situation to plan a strategy!"

Ryuu rolled his eyes, though his grin remained. He caught a shadow in the corner of his eye, however, spying a them from one of the dark tunnels. Ryuu had the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox, there was no one in the Tribe that could pass by him unnoticed. He couldn't tell who was in the tunnel, staring at them, but he could tell it was another delegate from one of the other Tribes.

The shadow realized Ryuu had noticed hi,, and retreated back into the shadows.


	18. Faash: Déja Vu

Legend of The Chezamon

Chapter 16- Faash: Déjà vu

The Danian walked through the endless corridors of the Underground Den, looking around at the chambers, and watching as Hunters gave him nervous stares before turning back to mind their own business. He knew they were not yet accustomed to his presence, not to mention they found him quite… intimidating. Who could blame them? After all, he looked rather intimidating to them. However, there were a few daring pups who had the nerves to walk up to him, softly press their paws at one of his legs, and then ran back to their littermates crying out 'I touched the Danian!'. He rolled his eyes at these pups.

They were not very big; they were the size of a cat, more or less, and their eyes were big. Their pupils were dilated most of the time. Their fur varied in color, but all of them were opaque tones of various shades; there were green, blue, lilac, but most of the pups had light brown of grayish colors.

He had seen a few pups who were already starting to grow their adult fur and were much larger in size (the size of a German shepherd, according to Sarah) these were probably in their teens. The adults called them Yearlings. They had patches of varying colors, depending on the color of their baby fur, growing out in their baby fluff in different parts of their body. Sometimes he would just ignore the pups', but other times they attempted to play with his antennae when he was not looking. It was annoying, but what could he do? He did not wish to make the pups' parents angry.

He was brought from his thoughts by a yelp. Looking down, he met the emerald eyes of a Yearling, who was glaring up at him in a fighting position. His baby fluff was an opaque red with a few black spots, and his growing adult fur was rust red, with bright purple paws and blue markings around his eyes. His eyes had slit pupils, and in turn he had greenish dark blue rings around his eyes.

"Hello there," the Danian greeted the pup politely, and was rather surprised when the pup attempted to tackle him, but due to his still-small size, only knocked himself in the head with Faash's massive leg. Still, as he rubbed his head, the pup glared at him with all the courage in the world.

"Stay away from my mama!" he growled, failing to look scary.

"Your… mama?" the Danian was confused, "Excuse me, little guy, but I don't even know who your mama is."

"Liar!" the yearling swiped at the Danian's arm, but missed.

Faash couldn't help but chuckle inwardly, watching as the pup struggled to get free of his grasp. However, he soon put him down, not wanting to cause problems with an older Chezamon.

"Sockett!"

Faash was surprised when Syena trotted towards them, giving the pup a stern look, "Socket, what did I tell you about being rude to guests?" she said with in a scolding tone.

"Mama!" the pup whined in reply, "I was telling him to stay away!"

The Danian was surprised when the pup referred to her as 'Mama'. Did this mean she had a mate? He could already hear Wamma making a comment about this, if he knew.

"I'll talk to you later about this, young pup," Syena replied, "Go back to the den."

Sockett gave Faash one more glare before heading out for his and his mothers' den, his ears flattened against his head, muttering something about him he couldn't understand. When she was sure the pup would not hear them, Syena approached the Danian.

"Sorry for that," she apologized, "My pup doesn't want me to hang around other males," she looked down in embarrassment, "He's a bit jealous."

"Why don't you ask your mate to look after him?" Faash inquired, trying to dissimulate his feeling of awkwardness.

Syena looked down, "It would be a good idea… if I _had_ a mate."

Faash was caught off guard.

"Wait, you don't have a mate?" he inquired, "I assumed since you had a pup, you would had a mate."

"Well…" the Huntress blushed, "You're going to say I'm nuts, but I don't recall ever having a mate in my life."

"Seriously?" Faash asked, "I imagined a lovely female such as yourself would had a handful of suitors." He grew nervous when she gave him a questioning look; "I mean, you're a beautiful female, who wouldn't give anything to go out on a date with you?"

Syena's hard stare softened. "Are you asking me out?"

!

"M-Me…?" Faash blushed deeply and looked around to see if there was no one else around to see this. Damn it, why did he have to get in these kind of situations? And this time he didn't even need Wamma to do so! Now he had to find a way out of this without offending Syena.

The Huntress decided to toy a bit with him. "Well?" she smiled teasingly. "Are you asking me out, or is it true what they say that there are no female Danians?"

"The second option. Our Queen is the only female in the Hive." Faash replied quickly. Why was it so hard for him to talk to this female in particular?

"Lieutenant Syena!" suddenly a voice echoed in the set of tunnels.

When a Sorka came running through the tunnels, Faash looked upwards. "_Thank you_!" he thought to himself.

"What is it?" Syena inquired in worry after noticing the tone on Sorka's voice.

"The Alphas want to see you."

"M-Me?" she blinked. "Have I done something wrong?"

"No. It's about the M'arrillian that was brought, that's all I know. I think they've called for other packleaders to see who will interrogate him."

Knowing at once it was a serious matter, Syena nodded, but she still gave Faash a playful look. "I guess it'll be another time." With this, Syena sped down the tunnel Sorka came from gracefully. Sorka, however, didn't fail to see the deep blush on the Danian's face.

"Looks like you're smitten with the lieutenant, aren't you?"

"NO!" Faash snapped out of sudden, now that the object of his nervousness was gone. "I've only known her for a few days!"

"No offense, pal, but to anyone it looks like you two have known each other for a while. Don't worry, it happens to everyone eventually."

"Besides, even if I actually had a crush on her, which I _don't_, I'm a Danian and she's a Chezamon! It would never work out!"

Before Sorka could say something, steps behind them caught their attention. They turned around to see Kaya, Shaoran, Jerome and Toba quickly making their way somewhere. Before they could inquires as to where they were going, Hikari's fragile-looking figure trotted after them in alarm. "Guys, knock it off! You'll get us in trouble!

"Come on, Hikari!" Kaya retorted with a grin. "We're not doing anything illegal!"

"Actually, peeking our noses in a reunion of packleaders can be counted as illegal." Jerome replied with a gulp.

"Don't look at me, I only came because you technically blackmailed me." Shaoran sighed with a roll of his eyes, his ears drooping.

Faash followed the Hunters from afar, while Sorka left and probably went to look for someone of high rank to accuse Kaya and the others for what they were going to do. Maybe they were going to the same reunion as Syena. In his rush, he forgot that Chezamon had keen senses. Shaoran's ears twitched when he caught the sound of footsteps behind them, about two caves away. He turned around and turned his pupils to slits; he caught sight of the corporal heat of another Creature. Judging by the size, it could be one of the Danians, but he couldn't tell who it was.

"Come out, Danian. I know you're there." Shaoran spoke softly, earning the attention of his packmates.

Knowing he had been discovered, Faash reluctantly stepped out of his hiding place and walked towards the group. "My apologies, I just thought I could ask you if Syena would be at that reunion."

"That's very likely." Kaya shrugged. "She is one of the Top Hunters and Huntresses in the Den, or lieutenants, as you've heard."

"They're going to decide what to do with the M'arrillian?"

"Looks like it." Hikari retorted, before glaring at her male packmates. "I've tried to tell them that if we get caught we'll get into trouble!"

"_Double, double toil and trouble_

_Fire burn and cauldron bubble_!" Toba sung cheerfully, causing the other Chezamon to let out groans of frustrations, Shaoran in particular.

"Toba, I swear, if you sing that forsaken song one more time, I'll grapple my ears!" the rust red Hunter whined, covering his ears.

"Come on, guys!" Kaya brought their attention back to business. "Let's go before the meeting ends or we won't know what happens with eel head!" he looked at Faash. "You may come with us if you'd like, jus try not to call attention to yourself."

"That's quite impossible…" Jerome muttered shyly under his breath. "Especially with all those legs."

Faash pretended to not have heard that last comment as he followed the Hunters through tunnels and passages, feeling the nervous glances of pups, Hunters, Healers and many others. He came across a member of another Tribe every now and then, but he passed by without even looking at them.

Finally, they came across a large stone door, with carved paw prints, feathers and claw marks. IT seemed to be a very important door, judging by the Clawders standing guard outside. The group went past them until they were certain they were out of earshot, but Faash's attention never left the door.

"Isn't that the door we're supposed to sneak in?" Faash inquired in low voice.

"Yeah, but not with those Clawders guarding it." Jerome replied. "We're peeking through the Hole."

"The… Hole?"

"It's a small tunnel with a narrow entrance that goes beneath the Meeting Chamber. You can hear anything that is going on above, and it's very convenient since the higher-ups don't know about it, only Hunters and the low-class like us." Kaya snickered.

"And you're the first non-Tribe member to know about it, so you better not tell anyone." Shaoran frowned at the Danian.

"Your secret is safe." Faash replied.

Finally, they came to a large rock. Next to the wall; making sure there was no one around, Shaoran and Toba pushed it out of the way, revealing a narrow opening, big enough for a Chezamon-and a Danian-to fit in.

"Well, I think I'll stay here and keep watch." Shaoran stated. "I'm not going in there."

"Party-pooper!" Toba cried out with a pout, before sliding into the crevice, followed by Jerome and Kaya. Shaoran simply rolled his eyes refusing to even look at the crevice. Hikari sighed and took a paw to her head.

"What am going to do with them?" she muttered in low voice, before sliding in as well, her ears low.

Faash managed to fit into the crevice with some effort, and followed Hikari through the narrow tunnel, so narrow he had to walk low on his four legs to move in. It wasn't that dark, there were tiny holes that allowed them to see where they were going. Faash stopped when the Chezamon stopped and pricked their ears; he could hear faint voices coming form above, even though he couldn't see the Creatures above.

"So what shall we do with this stranger?" he recognized Baojia's voice.

"Tangath Toborn suggested that we interrogate him to make sure there are no more of its kind around." Torimaku spoke next.

"That's a waste of time, if I may have an opinion." An unfamiliar male voice growled. "My lord and lady, I insist we execute the outsider immediately."

"I agree with Tangath, we should interrogate the outsider." Syena's voice talked next in a hard tone, making Faash shiver a bit. "Executing him without any information on where he came from may provoke an attack from this Creature's Tribe."

"Please! If there were others like him in Mist Forest, they'd have attacked already!"

"Taravokk, I know you do not like outsiders; none of us do, actually, but this is serious." Another random male voice said.

"Remember what the humans said about these M'arrillians?" Hukaro reminded the unknown number of present Chezamon in the room. "Those Creatures are supposed to control minds, they must be very dangerous if the other Tribes are so wary."

"Mind control?" Kaya growled in low voice form the group's hideout. "Come on! When that rotten eel shot that white arrow that struck me I didn't feel like I was being mind-controlled!"

Faash's eyes widened when he heard the remark. "What do you mean? You're immune to their mind-control?"

Rocket groaned in frustration. "You too? Tangath Toborn and Bodhal also made a whole scandal because of that attack and it didn't even do anything to Kaya!"

"Is something wrong with that particular white arrow?" Hikari asked the Danian with worry. "Was it poisonous or something?"

"Those arrows are a special attack that allows a M'arrillian to brainwash other Creatures." Faash explained. "Once you're struck with that attack, the M'arrillians control your mind and can force you to do anything they wish. The only way to release someone from the M'arrillians' control is by using special battlegear."

"Then why am I not under that eel head's control?" Kaya insisted. "Was that attack at its lowest? Or the eel head was simply incompetent?"

"I think the course of action we should take is speak with some of the delegates form the other Tribes and ask them about the M'arrillians so we can have an idea of how dangerous they truly are." Torimaku said.

There were murmurs or a few growls among the crowd of packleaders. That's when the hidden Hunters realized they'd heard enough, besides Toba's humming of his silly song would surely get them caught.

"Hey, Danian, try to make some space." Rocket whispered. "We're going out."

With some difficulty, Faash turned around and walked back the way they came, the Chezamon behind him; however, as he was approaching the entrance to the secret tunnel, he started to hear voices coming from outside.

"Are you hiding something behind that rock, Shaoran?" he recognized Ryuu's voice, and quickly motioned for the other Chezamon to stop and be quiet. Faash took a peek outside, and found Ryuu trying to get past Shaoran, who tried desperately to keep him away.

"Hide something? Come on, what could I possibly hide behind a rock?"

"In that case, let me see what's behind."

"Why?" Shaoran blocked the way with his body frame. "Aren't you busy? I mean, Princess Fen is confined to her chambers for the moment, the Alphas asked you to keep an eye on her, didn't they?"

Ryuu frowned at the Hunter's insistence. "If you don't step aside in the next five seconds, I shall push you aside and take whatever you are hiding to the Alphas!"

"What's going on!"

Suddenly, Ryuu's whole demeanor changed when a feminine voice snapped through the air. His eyes widened, his pupils dilated and his ears flattened against his head; Faash managed to see a speck of creamy fur, and Ryuu turning around towards it, looking unusually nervous and trembling.

"K-Kendra, sweetie!" Ryuu stuttered, a goofy smile on his face. "W-What are you d-doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Kendra replied curtly. "I thought you were supposed to guard Princess Fen."

"I am!" Ryuu snapped.

"Then why are you wasting your time bothering Hunters when you should be doing your job?"

"You're right, I'm going, I'm going!" Ryuu was about to leave, but he leaned his head closer to the female named Kendra with wide pupils. "But how about a little kiss?"

Kendra narrowed her eyes and simply gave him a pat on the cheek. "Don't even think about it."

Ryuu sighed in disappointment as he trotted down the tunnel, his head and tail lowered. When Shaoran was certain Ryuu was out of earshot, he motioned Faash to slid out of the secret passage. When the Danian did as told, he took a better look at the female who just made Ryuu drool. She had a beige coat, with olive drab camouflage forehead, back, front paws and at the tip of the tail; her ears were a darker olive shade than her back's. Her maw, underbelly and back legs were a pastel citrine color. She examined the Danian with criticizing bluish purple eyes.

"You are one of the delegates from the Danian Tribe, right?" she inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, ma'am."

Her lips curved upward playfully. "You don't need to be formal with me. You may call me Kendra." She bowed her head. "And how may I call you?"

"F-Faash."

"That was a close one!" Kaya let out a sigh of relief as he slid out of the crevice.

"Close one?!" Shaoran snapped with bristled fur. "He nearly caught me! And you know how he punishes Hunters meddling in private matters!"

"Cool it down, Shaoran!" Jerome retorted. "What matters is that we didn't get caught, neither by Ryuu or anyone inside those chambers-" Jerome yelped when Kaya quickly shut his maw with his paws.

"Aahh, so that's what you were doing." Kendra frowned and crossed her paws. "You know that's against the laws, don't you?"

"We do, but Kaya said he wanted to know what happened to eel-head, so we tagged along; we were going to bring Rocket, but Hukaro had him work with the digger Hunters as punishment-" Toba was interrupted when his maw was shut, this time by Shaoran.

"Aja." Kendra narrowed her eyes at the group. "I see."

"Don't look at me, I said it was a bad idea from the beginning!" Hikari lifted her paws defensively.

"So, Miss Kendra, do you know Ryuu in some way?" Faash blurted out to changed the subject and avoid a conflict.

Kendra sighed and nodded her head. "I know him _very_ well." Her tone was somewhat mysterious.

"Faash…" Shaoran read the confused expression on the Danian's face, and whispered into her ear. "She's Ryuu's mate."

"Ex-mate." Jerome corrected him.

"Too bad, they were a cute couple!" Toba pouted sadly, before Hikari elbowed his ribs hardly. "Hey! That hurts!"

Faash turned to face Kendra. "I'm sorry for that-"

"Don't be sorry." Kendra retorted curtly. "It just didn't worked out the way we hoped, let's leave it like that. If you'll excuse me, there are things I need to do right now." With those last words, the female trotted down the tunnel, her creamy fur gleaming under the torch light, until her figure disappeared around the corner.

"I… Suppose it's a very delicate matter to her, isn't it?" Faash asked, his eyes still set on the direction she had just gone to.

"You have no idea." Kaya sighed in dismay. "If you mention if to Ryuu, he'll instantly take it against you."

"Is it that bad? What happened between them?"

"You sure are curious when you want to!" Shaoran snapped his fangs.

"They became mates when they were young, much younger than the usual age. Ryuu was just a Clawder at that time." Hikari explained. "Things went well for some time, but when Ryuu became Captain, he started focusing more on his military career and less on his mating. Eventually, Kendra couldn't take it anymore and she left him."

Faash blinked in surprise. "How do you know so much about it?"

"Are you kidding? All the Tribe knows about those two's love life, or rather, _former_ love life." Kaya snickered. "But as you just saw, Ryuu's still madly in love for her, and he wants to reconcile with her, but judging by the reason they separated, I don't think it's happening soon."

Toba started to laugh. "You should see Ryuu's face every time he sees Kendra with another male. All like this!" He pouted and frowned, trying to imitate Ryuu's expression, earning snickers from his other packmates.

"Well, Kendra has the right to start over with whoever she wants, doesn't she?" Faash inquired.

"You know nothing about our customs, Danian." Shaoran frowned. "Once you've found a mate, you cannot be with another, even if you're separated. It's until death do them apart."

"Don't be so hard on him, Shaoran." Jerome commented. "He's an outsider, remember? You can't blame any of the delegates for not knowing our customs, considering they didn't even know we existed until a few days ago."

"Well, I think I'll be on my way." Faash spoke quickly. "My Tribemates must be looking for me."

Waving goodbye to the Hunters, Faash sped down the tunnel they had come from, but as soon as he turned around the corner he ran into someone. Both rolled unto the floor, until he landed on his back, and felt weight over his chest. He immediately looked up at the stranger.

"Why don't look where you are-?!"

He froze when he realized he was looking into Syena's equally shocked eyes; she was laying on top of his chest, with ears bent down and pupils turned to slits. Both blushed deeply upon realizing what had just happened.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" Syena immediately rolled of Faash's chest and stepped back as she watched him stand up. "I didn't mean to-!"

"No, no, don't apologize!" Faash retorted, his face looking redder than usual. "I'm the one who ran into you, I should be the one who apologizes!"

They grew silent for a few seconds, before the Danian gathered his courage and broke it. "So, about your proposal from a while ago…" he felt like a complete idiot.

"Yeah?" Syena inquired with raised ears and curious eyes.

"I wanted to ask you… if you wouldn't mind hanging out with me sometime?" Faash could swear he was sweating and his heart was throbbing inside his chest.

"Well, I…" the Huntress looked down, with a faint smile. "I wouldn't actually mind. We could hang out sometime, when I'm not busy."

"I could accompany you home, if you'd like."

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't think it's a good idea. Socket doesn't like when I bring males to our den." She thought for a moment. "But if you want, I can show you around the Den , in case you're not yet familiarized with the passages yet."

"I…" Faash managed to calm himself down. His lips curved upward into a smile. "I'd be honored."


End file.
